The Devil and the Ten Commandments
1962 film by Julien Duvivier
Le Diable et les Dix Commandements (English: The Devil and the Ten Commandments) is a French film from 1962 directed by Julien Duvivier that consists of seven sketches (eight in the versions shown in Germany and Japan) played by an ensemble cast that includes Michel Simon, Micheline Presle, Françoise Arnoul, Mel Ferrer, Charles Aznavour, Lino Ventura, Fernandel, Alain Delon, Danielle Darrieux, Jean-Claude Brialy, and Louis de Funès.
The film contrasts a series of human failings with the ever-present hope of redemption and a snake (voiced by Claude Rich) adds the Devil's comments.
Plot
Episode 1 Jérôme, the old handyman at a convent, is warned that he will lose his job if he continues to take the name of the Lord in vain, but is saved when the visiting bishop proves to be an old school friend.
Episode 2 To obtain a beautiful necklace, Françoise succumbs to the wealthy Philip, husband of her friend Micheline. Her husband Georges finds the necklace she had hidden and gives it to Micheline after a happy afternoon together.
Episode 3 Denis, a Jesuit novice, leaves the order to avenge his sister's suicide, which was provoked by Garigny, who seduced her into prostitution and drug addiction. The police tell him that Garigny, if convicted for pimping and dealing, would only get a few years. He arranges to confront Garigny alone and unarmed, but in fact has a concealed shotgun. When he says he is leaving to inform the police, Garigny grabs the gun and shoots him dead. In fact Denis had already alerted the police, who arrest Garigny for murder.
“The Devil and the Ten Commandments” enters the record as 1962 film by Julien Duvivier. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Devil, Commandments and film can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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Object files, edition statements, performance records and contemporary criticism preserve different stages of the work’s history. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 20, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1962025. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 1 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1962.
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This entry incorporates text from “The Devil and the Ten Commandments” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.