Galia (1966)
Directed by Georges Lautner

Comedy / Crime / Thriller

Film Synopsis

A good-looking twenty-something, Galia leaves her home in Normandy and settles in the centre of Paris.  She is walking along the banks of the Seine one evening when she notices a young woman apparently drowning in the river.  Acting on impulse, Galia comes to the woman's rescue and, concerned by her distressed state, takes her back to her garret apartment near Notre-Dame Cathedral.  The woman introduces herself as Nicole and explains that she was driven to attempt suicide by her partner Greg, a loathsome individual who cynically exploits women for his own ends. 

Galia agrees to visit Nicole's apartment and recover her suicide note, but she changes her mind and allows Greg to think that his partner has killed herself.  She then follows Greg about town when he leaves the art gallery where he works and soon discovers that he has another girlfriend.  This information comes as no surprise to Nicole.  By now, Galia realises she is strongly attracted to Greg and in next to no time they have become an item.  A short stay in Venice leaves Galia in no doubt that she has lost his heart to him.  She hardly notices her lover's attempts to use her for his own advantage, directing her towards a man named Wespyr with whom he is keen to go into business.

Galia is surprised when, one day, Greg tells her that the lifeless body of his wife has been fished out of the Seine.  There is no mistake: he has identified the body himself!  Returning to her apartment, the young woman is greeted by the sight of Nicole, still very much alive.  It is by now apparent that Galia is falling into the same trap that led Nicole to try to kill herself.  Greg is manipulating her for his own selfish ends, just as he does with all women who fall under his spell.  Nicole decides that the time has come for her to take matters into her own hands...
© James Travers
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Film Credits

  • Director: Georges Lautner
  • Script: Vahé Katcha, Georges Lautner
  • Cinematographer: Maurice Fellous
  • Music: Michel Magne
  • Cast: Mireille Darc (Galia), Venantino Venantini (Greg), Françoise Prévost (Nicole), Jacques Riberolles (Matik), François Chaumette (Wespyr), Edward Meeks (Un amant de Galia), Philippe Castelli (L'homme au téléphone), Francis Blanche (L'homme de la piscine), Georges Lautner (Le camionneur), Jacques Santi, Henri Attal, Raoul Saint-Yves, Francis Lemonnier, Louis Viret, Roland Catalano, Carole Lebesque, Marlène Charell, Ann Bosshard, Nanna Michael, Natacha Von Turmanow
  • Country: France / Italy
  • Language: French
  • Support: Black and White
  • Runtime: 105 min

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