Original release date: Paris, 07.02.58 – 90 mins
- Country: France/Italy
- Director: Denys de La Patellière
- Certification number / date: 27339 on 09.07.58
- First release date in Italy: 14/08/58
- Production companies: Cité Films, Paris (France) / Films Agiman, Paris (France), Monica Film (Italy).
- Alternative titles (+ dates and running times): Italy – Teresa Etienne; Germany – Therese Etienne (1958 – 90′)
- Cast: Françoise Arnoul, James Robertson
Another obscure Franco-Italian co-production, Thérèse Étienne sounds like a right old, ripe old slice of melodrama. A wealthy farm owner, Anton Muller, marries one of his workers, who then falls in love with his stepson and rather foolishly becomes pregnant by him. In order to avoid any kind of reprisals, they decide there’s no option but to kill Anton…
Little critical information is available about this production, which doesn’t appear to have had any kind of English language release. I’d like to imagine it as being a kind of proto-Death Laid an Egg, but suspect it’s actually nothing like it! Curiously, it’s of note because it features a rare Euro role for popular British character actor James Robertson Justice, who plays the authoritarian Anton. Italian involvement is limited to the production company Monica Film, who were involved with a handful of productions in the period.