Bluebeard

Landru, shown in the United States as Bluebeard, is a 1963 French-Italian crime drama directed by Claude Chabrol and written by Françoise Sagan. It revisits the real case of Henri Désiré Landru, the French serial killer who, during World War I, preyed on lonely women and disposed of their bodies. The narrative centers on his apprehension and trial, framing the proceedings as a courtroom film grounded in documentary material yet tinged with black comedy. Charles Denner plays Landru, with Michèle Morgan, Danielle Darrieux and Hildegard Knef among the supporting cast. The film is an early example of Chabrol's detached, ironic approach to murder and respectable bourgeois facades.