Desperate Decision
1952 film by Yves Allégret

Desperate Decision (French: La jeune folle) is a 1952 French drama film directed by Yves Allégret and starring Danièle Delorme, Henri Vidal and Jean Debucourt. It was shot at the Joinville Studios in Paris. The film's sets were designed by the art director Alexandre Trauner.
Synopsis
In 1922 during the Irish Civil War, a young woman Catherine heads to Dublin seeking vengeance on the man who killed her brother. She meets a man Steve who wishes to protect her as she is teetering on the edge of madness. However, when she discovers that he is the murderer she takes her revenge.
Cast
Danièle Delorme as Catherine
Henri Vidal as Steve
Jean Debucourt as Le messager / A Mysterious Man
Jacqueline Porel as Mother Superior
Georges Chamarat as Le chef de gare
Olivier Hussenot as Le colleur d'affiches
Jacques Dynam as Le consommateur
Michel Etcheverry as Le prêtre
Gabrielle Fontan as Soeur Patricia
Joëlle Bernard as La femme ivre
Maurice Ronet as Jim
Nicolas Vogel as Tom
Marcel Journet as Le chef de police Donovan
Madeleine Gérôme as Madame Donovan
Gabriel Gobin as L'employé de la gare
Madeleine Barbulée as La voyageuse
Lolita De Silva as Soeur Ruth
References
Bibliography
Bessy, Maurice & Chirat, Raymond. Histoire du cinéma français: 1951–1955. Pygmalion, 1989.
Rège, Philippe.
“Desperate Decision” enters the record as 1952 film by Yves Allégret. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Desperate, Decision and film can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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Attribution, date and provenance are strongest when supported by the original work, a catalogue record and documented transmission. The source revision retrieved here is dated Mar 3, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q3209850. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1952, 1922, 1951 and 1955.
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