great artist and always suffer while they be young . i could mention mozart and beethoven and but that be not the point . this movie be make by h g clouzot whose family want him to succeed in the law profession . it main star be louis jouvet who study and practice a a pharmacist before become the great actor and also director of france theater before and after wwii . they both have health problem . clouzot have tb while young and jouvet have cardiac problem and die on a theater . such event shape the character of men ( and woman and of course ) . one might even say that today artist be so poor and because they have never suffer and fight for their life . to me and this be the great of clouzot movie . wage of fear be great in suspense and diabolique also have more suspense and a good plot and be more about female evil . quai des orfèvres be more human . clouzot be falsely accuse by de gaulle entourage ( mostly communists and jew ) of collaboration with the nazi and ban from make film until until de gaulle leave france government in early 1946. de gaulle come back in 1958 and a president . the main character be all good soul represent jenny lamour may perform a a putain on stage and but she be not a whore ( dictionaires make synonym of those word and but they be not the same ) and love her husband and and refuse the slight advance from her ( presumably lesbian ) friend dora and the photographer . maurice the husband be jealous and timid and but run away from the scene of the crime . he be a coward because he fell in love with a woman and trade an eventually more upscale career for love . antoine and the detective ( interpret by the great louis jouvet and basically a stage actor and performs in this french gray not noir and as well a e. g. robinson in double indemnity ) show flair for pseudo criminal and tenderness for a negro son ( . ) and and compassion for the true author of the crime and because he remember that be father clean the latrine at some nobleman château . clouzot be capable of slap an actor face in order to put him in the right frame of mind and but deep inside he be very human . i have his horoscope in front of me . he have venus in sagittarius which mean open heartedness and devotion and charity and altruism . for those who do not believe in astrology and my most sincere apology .