The Earrings of Madame de…

Year: 1953

Runtime: 105 mins

Language: French

Director: Max Ophüls

DramaRomance

Her vanity leads to ruin. In fin‑de‑siècle France, Countess Louise, married to a wealthy general, covertly sells the wedding‑day earrings he gifted her to cover secret debts and then pretends they are lost, hoping to maintain appearances. When her husband uncovers the fraud, a cascade of tragic misunderstandings erupts, pulling in the earrings, the general, Louise, and her new lover, the charismatic and scheming Italian baron Donati.

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Timeline & Setting – The Earrings of Madame de… (1953)

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Main Characters – The Earrings of Madame de… (1953)

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Major Themes – The Earrings of Madame de… (1953)

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Last Updated: August 19, 2025 at 05:02

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Movies about gilded cage tragedies like The Earrings of Madame de…

Stories of personal ruin within the glittering, oppressive world of high society.If you enjoyed the tragic elegance of The Earrings of Madame de…, discover similar movies about characters suffocating in beautiful, restrictive worlds. These films explore personal ruin within high society, often driven by forbidden love and the heavy weight of societal judgment.

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Narrative Summary

The narrative pattern follows characters, often women, whose lives are defined by the opulence and rules of an aristocratic or elite setting. A seemingly small transgression—a deception, a forbidden affair—snowballs into an inescapable tragedy, revealing the cage beneath the gilding and culminating in a sorrowful, emotionally heavy conclusion.

Why These Movies?

These films are grouped together because they share a specific mood: a melancholic and fatalistic tone set against a backdrop of extreme elegance. They feature steady pacing that allows emotional consequences to build gradually, and they possess a heavy emotional weight centered on sacrifice and the high cost of societal hypocrisy.

Movies about cascading consequences like The Earrings of Madame de…

Where a small, initial deception spirals into an unavoidable tragedy.Fans of The Earrings of Madame de… will appreciate these films centered on a single lie that spirals out of control. Explore stories where a small deception triggers a domino effect of tragic misunderstandings, testing relationships and leading to heavy emotional outcomes.

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Narrative Summary

The core narrative structure involves a pivotal, secret act—often born from vanity or necessity—that is discovered or misconstrued. This discovery sets off an unstoppable series of events, driven by misunderstandings and pride, where characters lose control of the situation. The journey of a symbolic object often mirrors the emotional downfall, culminating in a profound sense of loss and regret.

Why These Movies?

Movies in this thread share a specific plot mechanic and emotional arc. They are connected by their focus on cause-and-effect storytelling, a moderate complexity that tracks the fallout of a central deception, and a consistently heavy, melancholic mood as the characters are swept toward a tragic destiny.

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The Earrings of Madame de… Summary

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The Earrings of Madame de… Timeline

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