Based on a real crime that took place in France in 1933, Murderous Maids (original title: Les blesseurs assasines) makes it clear by its title who the perpetrators are. But what would prompt Christine and Léa, two convent-educated, seemingly harmless, girls to lash out? And what will be the nature of their crime?

These are questions that ought to provide interesting answers, and the climax of the film ought to be shocking. In the end, though, Murderous Maids is a curious jumble of potentially interesting pieces that fail to fit together into an effective whole film.

In terms of narrative structure, Murderous Maids is awkwardly assembled; running only 94 minutes, the film still feels alternately padded and rushed. The first portion of the story follows Christine (Sylvie Testud) through a few childhood events, at the same time introducing us to her mother and her sister Léa (Julie-Marie Parmentier). However, this material never seems to have much relevance to what follows; some of it seems merely pointless, while other aspects of Christine and Léa's family life are so clumsily presented that their effect falls flat. It's always a bad sign when a viewer could miss the first thirty minutes of a film (especially a short film) and have just as good an understanding of plot and characters as a viewer who's been watching from the start.

In contrast, the central portion of the story, with Christine and Léa working as maids in the same household, feels rushed. Christine's behavior rapidly become more erratic, but we're given no real insight into why she's acting that way; long close-up shots of her expression seem intended to explain it all, but end up as merely cryptic. The climactic murder seems unmotivated; a few instances of conflict with "Madame" are referred to but not really addressed, and while their employer is strict and a bit obsessive in her own way, there's little indication that she's pushing the girls too far. The film is perhaps pushing us to see the origins of Christine's violent outburst in her problematic relationship with Léa, but this doesn't really work either.

The film's narrative problems continue to the very end, as the film concludes with an unnecessarily long section showing us Christine and Léa's behavior in prison. It doesn't add anything to the effect of the film; the closing text summary (which details what happened to each of them) could have run immediately after the crime scene, and we wouldn't have missed anything.

So if Murderous Maids is structurally flawed, does it offer anything exceptional in other areas? Not really. For us to enjoy the film based on its characters, we don't necessarily have to sympathize with them, but we do need to either gain a deeper understanding of them or see them change and grow. Murderous Maids doesn't hit any of these targets. It's abundantly clear from the start of the film that Christine is mentally unstable; certainly the rigid class structure of the time didn't make life any easier, but she can't even relate to the fellow servants. So when we see her falling apart, there's nothing of interest there. It's unfortunate that the family relationships are so muddled, because it seems as though we're expected to understand Christine and Léa in large part through their responses to the family. Intellectually, I recognize that the character of Christine is disturbed by the idea of her beloved sisters being taken away from her: the older sister through becoming a nun, the younger sister either by remaining more tied to her mother, or through marriage. But this doesn't really play out well in the film; Christine simply comes across as obsessive and irrational.

Nor does Léa develop significantly as a character; she's first characterized as a lively girl who simply adores and admires her older sister, and this never really changes, until late in the film when Léa, without explanation, apparently falls completely under her sister's spell, becoming equally antisocial. This could qualify as an interesting character development, except that as far as we can see, it's unmotivated; the plot demands that she change her behavior, and she does.

Viewers who find the premise of Murderous Maids intriguing would do well to seek out Sister, My Sister, an earlier adaptation of the same material that manages to make it work in a way that Murderous Maids never does.

The DVD

Video

Murderous Maids is presented in its original widescreen aspect ratio of 2.35:1, and is anamorphically enhanced. It's a satisfactory transfer, but not an outstanding one. Edge enhancement is visible throughout the film and is very noticeable in some scenes; overall the image is reasonably clear but not particularly sharp. Colors look natural and contrast is usually good as well, though some darker scenes are a bit too dark.

Optional English subtitles are provided.

Audio

The French Dolby 5.1 soundtrack is, like the video portion of the transfer, reasonably solid but not exceptional. The track sounds clean, and dialogue is clear for the most part. The sound is very center-focused, with little use of the surround channels. A French Dolby 2.0 soundtrack is also provided. 

Extras

In the special features section, we get an interview with actress Sylvie Testud (9 minutes) and another with director Jean-Pierre Denis (8 minutes), each discussing their thoughts on the film. The interviews are in French with English subtitles.

The original theatrical trailer for Murderous Maids is included, along with the U.S. version of the trailer, and a trailer for The Maids, another film based on the same material. An insert in the DVD contains a reprint of the original 1933 Vanity Fair article that brought together all the facts of the case.

Final thoughts

Murderous Maids has potential to be interesting, but the film never quite gets all the pieces to fit together in a coherent manner; it ends up being neither shocking nor psychologically compelling. It's watchable nonetheless, and is probably worth a rental if you're intrigued by the story.