Certain films travel just below the radar. "Return from the Ashes" is such a film. The ones who've seen it never forget it but somehow it's nowhere to be found. Never on video and so far not on DVD. I'm not going to tell you about the devilish plot because that's most of the pleasure of seeing it for the first time. Just let me wet your appetite by saying that Maximilian Schell plays a young amoral polish guy who seduces a French, older, wealthy widow, played for real by a great Ingrid Thulin. The action takes place at the dawn of the German occupation. She is Jewish he is not. When Schell asks her to marry him, she laughs it off as a surprisingly conventional request but he means it saying "At this time is not convention but defiance" So he marries the older Jewish woman...that's all I'm going to tell you about the story. Samantha Eggar, beautiful and skinny gives a powerful performance of seductive evilness. She is a stand out of major proportions. The ending seems a bit of a commercial concession but it doesn't spoil the cleverly tailored plot. If you see it announced on late night TV, set up your VCR or whatever contraption at your disposal.
32 Reviews
Better with every viewing
tomsview31 December 2012
Warning: Spoilers
About 25 years ago, I bought a record called "Movies and Me" featuring themes from movies composed by John Dankworth. I knew "Darling" and "The Servant" but I had never heard of the one I liked best: the theme from "Return from the Ashes". Much later, when I finally saw the movie, I realised how perfectly that lilting melody married with the film.
"Return from the Ashes" works despite credulity being stretched to breaking point along the way. The true quality of this film is not revealed from a reading of the plot. The movie plays far better than it reads.
Shortly before WW2 in Paris, Michelle Wolf, a doctor played by Ingrid Thulin meets a Polish refugee, Stanislaus Pilgrin played by Maximilian Schell. Although warned that he is only after her money, she falls in love with him. When the Germans capture Paris, Stanislaus – in his self-confessed, one gallant act of his life – marries Michelle, who is Jewish, to stop her being deported by the Nazis. But she is sent to a concentration camp anyway.
Years later, Michelle returns to Paris under an assumed name. But she is a changed woman emotionally and physically. Thought to be dead, no one recognises her at first. Although she is reacquainted with Stanislaus and her stepdaughter, the beautiful Fabi, played by Samantha Eggar, they believe that she simply bears a strong resemblance to the Michelle they knew. They want her to play Michelle in a complicated plot to retrieve funds that have been frozen since the war. Michelle goes along with the plan not realising that Fabi and Stanislaus have become lovers.
After revealing her true identity, Michelle moves into her old apartment with both Stanislaus and Fabi. From there the story becomes darker and darker. After many developments, the movie still has enough energy left to deliver one final twist at the end.
"Return from the Ashes" boasts three of the most attractive stars you are likely to see in one movie – Ingrid Thulin, Maximilian Schell and Samantha Eggar. For me, Ingrid Thulin is the standout. Beautiful, calm and sophisticated, she gave the impression that there was a lot more going on beneath the surface. It's surprising Hollywood didn't seek her out more often – possibly she would have made one of the great Hitchcock stars – in an interview, he once singled her out as the epitome of the kind of sexiness he admired, especially in her work for Ingmar Bergman.
Despite a "Vertigo" like sequence when Michelle is coached to play what is in reality herself, "Return from the Ashes" does not seem overly influenced by either Hitchcock or film noir. The dramatic use of black and white and the moody quality of the film is due to J. Lee Thompson's personal style. The man who made "Cape Fear" proved once again that he could make a thriller to stand with the best of them.
"Return from the Ashes" works despite credulity being stretched to breaking point along the way. The true quality of this film is not revealed from a reading of the plot. The movie plays far better than it reads.
Shortly before WW2 in Paris, Michelle Wolf, a doctor played by Ingrid Thulin meets a Polish refugee, Stanislaus Pilgrin played by Maximilian Schell. Although warned that he is only after her money, she falls in love with him. When the Germans capture Paris, Stanislaus – in his self-confessed, one gallant act of his life – marries Michelle, who is Jewish, to stop her being deported by the Nazis. But she is sent to a concentration camp anyway.
Years later, Michelle returns to Paris under an assumed name. But she is a changed woman emotionally and physically. Thought to be dead, no one recognises her at first. Although she is reacquainted with Stanislaus and her stepdaughter, the beautiful Fabi, played by Samantha Eggar, they believe that she simply bears a strong resemblance to the Michelle they knew. They want her to play Michelle in a complicated plot to retrieve funds that have been frozen since the war. Michelle goes along with the plan not realising that Fabi and Stanislaus have become lovers.
After revealing her true identity, Michelle moves into her old apartment with both Stanislaus and Fabi. From there the story becomes darker and darker. After many developments, the movie still has enough energy left to deliver one final twist at the end.
"Return from the Ashes" boasts three of the most attractive stars you are likely to see in one movie – Ingrid Thulin, Maximilian Schell and Samantha Eggar. For me, Ingrid Thulin is the standout. Beautiful, calm and sophisticated, she gave the impression that there was a lot more going on beneath the surface. It's surprising Hollywood didn't seek her out more often – possibly she would have made one of the great Hitchcock stars – in an interview, he once singled her out as the epitome of the kind of sexiness he admired, especially in her work for Ingmar Bergman.
Despite a "Vertigo" like sequence when Michelle is coached to play what is in reality herself, "Return from the Ashes" does not seem overly influenced by either Hitchcock or film noir. The dramatic use of black and white and the moody quality of the film is due to J. Lee Thompson's personal style. The man who made "Cape Fear" proved once again that he could make a thriller to stand with the best of them.
TCM keeps screwing up their ratings
blanche-213 March 2010
TCM gave this movie two stars. Ridiculous. I saw this film YEARS ago. I never forgot it and at one point, I tried to find out the name of it and was directed to another film. I suspected when I read the plot on the channel guide that this was the movie.
Set in flashback in pre-war Paris and in the present in post-war Paris, the story concerns a doctor, Michele, (beautiful Ingrid Thulin) hopelessly in love with Stanislaus, a chess-playing roué, excellently played by Maximillian Schell. He doesn't pretend to love her - he likes her, but what he loves is her money. They marry, but because she's Jewish, she's picked up and sent to Dachau.
During the time she's gone, her husband becomes involved with her now grown-up albeit unstable stepdaughter Fabienne (Samantha Eggar). After the war ends, and Michele doesn't return, Fabienne and Stan assume she's dead. However, because of the laws in France they can't get their hands on her money.
The truth is that Michele is alive, but had to go to a sanitarium after the war to recover from her horrendous experiences in the camp. She's scarred and aged, and when she finally returns to Paris, she stays in a hotel and turns to an old colleague, Charles (Herbert Lom) to fix her up.
When Fabienne spots what she thinks is a Michele-lookalike (actually Michele), she comes up with a plan to have her stepmother return from the dead, with the imposter taking a cut.
A really good movie, very intriguing, with good performances all around and excellent photography. I'm so sick of being burned by TCM's ratings - four stars for trash and two stars for a fine movie like this (not all the time, but occasionally).
By the way, this story is based on a novel by Hubert Monteilhet called "Return from the Ashes," and was remade into the magnificent German film "Phoenix."
Highly recommended.
Set in flashback in pre-war Paris and in the present in post-war Paris, the story concerns a doctor, Michele, (beautiful Ingrid Thulin) hopelessly in love with Stanislaus, a chess-playing roué, excellently played by Maximillian Schell. He doesn't pretend to love her - he likes her, but what he loves is her money. They marry, but because she's Jewish, she's picked up and sent to Dachau.
During the time she's gone, her husband becomes involved with her now grown-up albeit unstable stepdaughter Fabienne (Samantha Eggar). After the war ends, and Michele doesn't return, Fabienne and Stan assume she's dead. However, because of the laws in France they can't get their hands on her money.
The truth is that Michele is alive, but had to go to a sanitarium after the war to recover from her horrendous experiences in the camp. She's scarred and aged, and when she finally returns to Paris, she stays in a hotel and turns to an old colleague, Charles (Herbert Lom) to fix her up.
When Fabienne spots what she thinks is a Michele-lookalike (actually Michele), she comes up with a plan to have her stepmother return from the dead, with the imposter taking a cut.
A really good movie, very intriguing, with good performances all around and excellent photography. I'm so sick of being burned by TCM's ratings - four stars for trash and two stars for a fine movie like this (not all the time, but occasionally).
By the way, this story is based on a novel by Hubert Monteilhet called "Return from the Ashes," and was remade into the magnificent German film "Phoenix."
Highly recommended.
Captivating & Engrossing
zandi-130 June 2004
In a flash of incredible foresight, I recorded this gem as I watched it for the first time (maybe like 2 years ago...) The signature music has a waltzy, hypnotic cadence that completely draws you in, & a fascinating story unfolds in "post-war Paris", shot in appropriately atmospheric black & white. >From the very opening train scene, I was riveted. This one is on my shelf of films that I watch over & over again. Maximilian Schell is brilliantly handsome/wicked, as Stanislaus. I'd never even heard of Ingrid Thulin before -- someone on here mentioned her character, Michele, as "middle-aged" - that's not the impression I got. Michele is a jaw-droppingly gorgeous, dazzling blonde Swede{?}, who was married to a much older man, with a daughter. So she appears to be a young widow with a step-daughter in her late teens. On top of her late husband's sizable estate, Michele is also an X-ray technician. Ingrid Thulin is wonderful as Michele, combining just the right balance of high intellect yet vulnerability - very believable central character. Herbert Lom & Samantha Eggar also give stand-out performances.
I'm completely amazed that this incredible film has never "made it to video".... I'd really love to know who/how/why these decisions are made - seems like some really great work is allowed to sink without a trace.
I'm completely amazed that this incredible film has never "made it to video".... I'd really love to know who/how/why these decisions are made - seems like some really great work is allowed to sink without a trace.
A Neat Theatrical Melodrama...and Inspector Dreyfus finally is a good guy
theowinthrop27 October 2005
Warning: Spoilers
I have only seen this film once or twice, and it's been four decades ago. It is a sharp little murder story, with a clever scoundrel (Max Schell) who plans to make a real killing - a once in a lifetime shot at a fortune.
Schell is a first rate amateur chess player. He happens to meet Ingrid Thulin, a Jewish medical technician who was married before the war to an older, wealthier man. During the war she was in a camp, but she was lucky enough to survive.
She is vulnerable now, and she falls for Schell's polite, and then increasingly tender concerns for her. It isn't that she is stupid. She has resumed her career thanks to her closest friend's assistance (more of that later). But her home life is harsh - she only has her step daughter (Samantha Egger) who hates her as a woman who supplanted her mother. Egger is not that much younger than Thulin, and she thinks of Thulin as an adventuress who robbed her (Egger) of her inheritance. Actually Thulin is nice enough to share her house with Egger.
Schell sees the set-up as a golden opportunity. He woos Thulin, and marries her, much to the suspicions of her close friend. In the meantime he keeps Egger under control, because she is capable of giving him information useful for his future plans. And when she is no longer useful, but increasingly a romantic problem - she is suddenly found dead in an "accident". This effects Thulin, who is always just on the borderline because of her war experiences. Schell shows concern...he openly worries about possible suicidal tendencies. And then he sets his final plans into operation. And at that point, I will leave the plot line for the reader to seek out and see the film.
It turns out (I won't say how) Schell does not really count on the close friend affecting his plans. And that was the final reason I enjoyed the film. I have always been a fan of Herbert Lom. Ever since I saw him in THE LADYKILLERS, GAMBIT, A SHOT IN THE DARK (and the other "Pink Panther" films he popped up in), I have enjoyed his menace, his mania, and his remarkable acting skills. Except for GAMBIT (perhaps - in one scene he briefly shows menace), Lom usually played dangerous men to cross. In this film he finally played a decent guy. I can only say that it's a good thing that he's there at the end, literally, to help pick up the pieces.
Schell is a first rate amateur chess player. He happens to meet Ingrid Thulin, a Jewish medical technician who was married before the war to an older, wealthier man. During the war she was in a camp, but she was lucky enough to survive.
She is vulnerable now, and she falls for Schell's polite, and then increasingly tender concerns for her. It isn't that she is stupid. She has resumed her career thanks to her closest friend's assistance (more of that later). But her home life is harsh - she only has her step daughter (Samantha Egger) who hates her as a woman who supplanted her mother. Egger is not that much younger than Thulin, and she thinks of Thulin as an adventuress who robbed her (Egger) of her inheritance. Actually Thulin is nice enough to share her house with Egger.
Schell sees the set-up as a golden opportunity. He woos Thulin, and marries her, much to the suspicions of her close friend. In the meantime he keeps Egger under control, because she is capable of giving him information useful for his future plans. And when she is no longer useful, but increasingly a romantic problem - she is suddenly found dead in an "accident". This effects Thulin, who is always just on the borderline because of her war experiences. Schell shows concern...he openly worries about possible suicidal tendencies. And then he sets his final plans into operation. And at that point, I will leave the plot line for the reader to seek out and see the film.
It turns out (I won't say how) Schell does not really count on the close friend affecting his plans. And that was the final reason I enjoyed the film. I have always been a fan of Herbert Lom. Ever since I saw him in THE LADYKILLERS, GAMBIT, A SHOT IN THE DARK (and the other "Pink Panther" films he popped up in), I have enjoyed his menace, his mania, and his remarkable acting skills. Except for GAMBIT (perhaps - in one scene he briefly shows menace), Lom usually played dangerous men to cross. In this film he finally played a decent guy. I can only say that it's a good thing that he's there at the end, literally, to help pick up the pieces.
A little on the daft side but good fun nevertheless.
MOscarbradley12 March 2020
J. Lee Thompson may have been only a jobbing director but he was one of the best, graduating from British studio pictures in the fifties to international hits such as "Ice Cold in Alex", "Northwest Frontier" and "The Guns of Navarone". The latter earned him an Oscar nomination and the chance to work almost exclusively in America where he made "Cape Fear", one of the best thrillers of the sixties. In 1965 he made another first-rate thriller, "Return from the Ashes", which used the War and the Holocaust as jumping off points for an almost Hitchcockian tale of murder and greed, set in Paris but filmed in a British studio with an international cast.
If the plot is more than a little convoluted, Thompson's handling of Julius Epstein's fine script and first-rate performances from Maximilian Schell, Ingrid Thulin and Samantha Eggar go a long way in making this one of his most entertaining films. Thulin is the rich Jewish doctor, thought to have died in a concentration camp, Schell the gigolo who marries her for her money and Eggar the duplicitous daughter who's having an affair with Schell and the good thing is it doesn't quite go the way you expect it to. It's also superbly shot in widescreen black and white by Christopher Challis and is certainly worth seeing.
If the plot is more than a little convoluted, Thompson's handling of Julius Epstein's fine script and first-rate performances from Maximilian Schell, Ingrid Thulin and Samantha Eggar go a long way in making this one of his most entertaining films. Thulin is the rich Jewish doctor, thought to have died in a concentration camp, Schell the gigolo who marries her for her money and Eggar the duplicitous daughter who's having an affair with Schell and the good thing is it doesn't quite go the way you expect it to. It's also superbly shot in widescreen black and white by Christopher Challis and is certainly worth seeing.
If there is no God, no Devil, everything is permissable.
brogmiller14 May 2020
Following the excellent 'Cape Fear' the films of J. Lee Thompson represent a mixed bag to say the least. To be fair both 'Taras Bulba' and 'McKennas's Gold' were harmed by drastic editing but his other films simply missed the mark. This one, adapted from the novel of Hubert Moulheilhet, comes close and benefits from an excellent cast. The stupendous Maximilian Schell, brother of the equally talented Maria, is riveting as a charming, despicable sociopath. Ingrid Thulin is very touching as one who cannot or will not recognise her husband's worthlessnes until it is almost too late. Her voice is dubbed however and the voice they have given her does not seem to gel somehow. Anyway, her best work by far is for Ingmar Bergman in her native tongue. Samantha Eggar is suitably vixenish and Herbert Lom as always immaculate. Individual scenes are compelling and the film holds ones attention despite the slow pace. The film benefits not at all from John Dankworth's irritating score.
Cocky Thriller!
grantch9 May 2006
Once upon a time, before the giallos and the slasher films took over, there was an undercurrent of clever thrillers ... where you knew who had done it, but the question was could they get away with it? The earliest one I can remember is The Unsuspected with Claude Raines as a DJ with a mission ... In the '60's we had director William Castle's twisted thrillers (Homicidal is my favorite) and Bette Davis as Baby Jane and Charlotte ... then along came Return from the Ashes, at about the same time as Bunny Lake Is Missing. Ladies and gentlemen, RftA is a stunning thriller which will keep you enthralled from the expositionary opening to the wonderfully complex plot developments. Why is this not available to viewers today? This is a movie I would like to show friends. Hard to believe it was 40 + years ago I sat in a darkened theater enraptured by the clever plot with more twists and turns than you could believe. If you see this movie in any listings, record it! Ingrid Thulin, Samantha Eggar and Maximilian Schell pull out all the stops but they make you BELIEVE the lurid goings-on. Too bad movie makers can't look at these old classics and learn how to pace and plot a good thriller.
1965-Style Entertainment
ags12317 June 2021
Here's a sharp-focus, widescreen black & white thriller from 1965. If you're a fan of "Mirage," "My Blood Runs Cold," "Two on a Guillotine," etc., you'll understand and won't be disappointed. Otherwise, things are a bit precarious. Though the film takes place in 1945, clothes and hairstyles are strictly 1965. The low budget is painfully obvious, the studio-bound sets of MGM's British Borehamwood Studios are poor stand-ins for Paris. Ingrid Thulin and Maximilian Schell give fine performances. Samantha Eggar looks beautiful but lacks depth. Director J. Lee Thompson did a fine job with the original 1962 "Cape Fear," a tense drama that holds up well. "Return From the Ashes" just isn't as suspenseful or clever as it tries to be. Plus, its casual handling of the sensitive subject of a Holocaust survivor is clumsy. The film, however, is entertaining nonetheless.
True excellence. An amazing film.
cemab4y6 November 2008
This is a rare beauty of a film. (PLEASE release it on DVD). The film is a character study, and a masterful thriller. I saw on TV way back in the 60's and it has haunted me since. The opening scene, on a train, a boy is killed. The star ( the beautiful Ingrid Thulin) looks off in a "thousand-year" stare. She does not react to the tragedy. The camera pans back, and you see the number tattooed on her arm.
The film is shot, masterfully, in post-war Paris. People are just beginning to cope with life again, after the Nazi occupation. The Doctor returns to work, and her Husband (Maximilian Schell,in a career-defining role), hires her to impersonate his wife, whom he believes to be dead.
The gorgeous Samantha Eggar, slinks around the house. Oozing with sexuality, you drool over her character.
After some plot twists, including the fabled bath scene, you are drawn into the plot. The film continues with some nail-biting, and the conclusion is just fine.
I will scour my TV listings, and pray it comes back on!
The film is shot, masterfully, in post-war Paris. People are just beginning to cope with life again, after the Nazi occupation. The Doctor returns to work, and her Husband (Maximilian Schell,in a career-defining role), hires her to impersonate his wife, whom he believes to be dead.
The gorgeous Samantha Eggar, slinks around the house. Oozing with sexuality, you drool over her character.
After some plot twists, including the fabled bath scene, you are drawn into the plot. The film continues with some nail-biting, and the conclusion is just fine.
I will scour my TV listings, and pray it comes back on!
Return from the Ashes
CinemaSerf26 March 2023
Maximilian Schell is good in this as the pretty odious "Pilgrin". He is an intellectual philanderer whom, upon the Nazi invasion of Poland, marries the wealthy Jewish "Mischa" (Ingrid Thulin). She is incarcerated in a concentration camp, presumed dead, but after the war meets her husband again only to discover that has taken up with her step-daughter Samantha Eggar ("Fabienne") and that he will stop at very little to get hold of what is left of her fortune. It's odd to see a film about Nazis and their horrendous treatment of the Jews and for that not to be the most toxic element of a film. That accolade must go to Schell, and to the really unlikeable Eggar - a pair who really do rather deserve each there. The film is just too long, there are too many sagging points and the score from jazz legend John Dankworth drags it down, too; but it does have a decent story, is well produced and the acting is effective too.
Fascinating, Well-crafted Thriller and Character Study
Bearauburn21 November 2013
Warning: Spoilers
I first saw this film as a young girl. Even at the age of 13, the opening scene struck me with its stark depiction of numb survival. The game of chess comes to symbolize the crafting of a deception, and a murder attempt. A haunting mood permeates the simple, yet effective scenes--one can almost feel the sense of trauma and tragedy of Post War France.
The ending is wonderfully satisfying and even somewhat shocking. This film makes no apology for itself--it presents us with a concentration camp survivor who is still in love with a narcissistic user, and we go on from there, somehow suspending all sense of disbelief in the face of masterful acting.
The ending is wonderfully satisfying and even somewhat shocking. This film makes no apology for itself--it presents us with a concentration camp survivor who is still in love with a narcissistic user, and we go on from there, somehow suspending all sense of disbelief in the face of masterful acting.
A grim melodrama with some outstanding acting
JasparLamarCrabb4 October 2013
Warning: Spoilers
A highly entertaining, rarely seen melodrama with a lot of grim underpinnings. Ingrid Thulin is released from a Nazi concentration camp to find that gigolo husband Maximilian Schell has shacked up with her stepdaughter. What ensues is a roundelay of lies, fraud and murder plots, mostly sprung from the demented mind of Samantha Eggar, giving a great performance as Thulin's neglected stepdaughter, a sociopath who cares only for herself. Eggar & Schell are a match made in hell, but Thulin, very much a survivor, does not fall easily for their shenanigans. Directed with a firm hand by J. Lee Thompson, who keeps the film virtually entirely indoors, adding to the feeling of claustrophobic dread. There are fine performances by the three principles and an excellent supporting role for Herbert Lom (as Thulin's wily colleague). The pre-credit sequences is astounding.
Max Schell: Cad.
rmax30482323 June 2016
This must be what's known as "an international production", directed by a Brit and starring a Swede, a Czech, an Austrian, and another Brit, shot in Paris. The title refers to the heroine's adjustment to life and former loves after imprisonment in a concentration camp.
Ingrid Thulin is a Jewish doctor living in Paris at the outbreak of the war, and Maximillian Schell is her ambitious, chess-playing, Polish paramour. He's needy; she's generous. When war is declared he finally asks her to marry him despite her being Jewish. She's delighted but remarks that she'd be happier if he were marrying her because he loves her, not because he hates the Germans. Schell corrects her. To have married her before would have been conforming. Now he's being defiant. It's an interesting exchange. It takes place while another doctor, Herbert Lom, is standing nearby. Lom -- how you say? -- loves her from afar.
A couple of weakness might as well be gotten out of the way. The musical score is immemorably atonal. Not much effort has been put into period realism. Garments and hair styles look like garments and hair styles looked in 1965. The music is more irritating that evocative, and the director, J. Lee Thompson, uses far too many gigantic close ups, as if this film were designed for the television screen. The makeup underscores what for any perceptive viewer doesn't need underscoring.
On Thulin's return from the concentration camps, her eyes have been turned into two black holes and her hair dusted with flour. It's a pretty careless handling of a subject that deserves very careful attention. However, Lom, who still loves her, restores her to at least a semblance of her former beauty. She still can't bring herself to contact Schell, now living in Paris with Thulin's step daughter, Semantha Eggar, from a previous marriage. As you can see, it's a little complicated. Lom loves Thulin, but Thulin loves Schell, who is shacked up with Eggar and who may or may not have EVER loved Thulin, to whom he is still married, although he's convinced she's dead.
It get even MORE complicated. Thulin had a lot of money but since her remains were never identified -- how could they be? -- the money that should go to her step daughter, Eggar, is being withheld by the French government. So Schell and Eggar meet Thulin and are struck by the resemblance to Schell's wife, still thought to be deceased. They try to enlist her aid in squeezing the money out of the government by having Thulin pretend to be Schell's wife. I hope you're following all this.
So all Thulin has to do, Schell insists anxiously, is pose as his wife "for a short time -- a RELATIVELY short time", forge a few papers in her handwriting, little technicalities like that. Thulin's response is polite enough. That's fine for him. He gets thirty million franks but what does she get? Thirty years in prison. But she's dealing with a determined con man who can make anything sound reasonable. "Oh, come ON, not thirty YEARS!" He scoffs, as if it might only be TWENTY years. She's curious, revolted, and shocked. Both Schell and Eggar soon reveal themselves to be scurrilous weasels, just out for the money.
Thulin, for some reason, finally reveals her true identity and Schell is the consummate manipulator. He gawks and then, angry, almost in tears, he asks, "How could you DO this to me. All those years I've WAITED." It would be funny if Schell played it that way, but he does it straight.
Schell prefers Eggar AND the money, and Thulin now is merely in the way. Two greedy bastards and one innocent victim, a set up for a murder. But I'll get off the plot at this point.
Among the more interesting scenes is the one in which Schell welcomes Thulin (her real identity now restored) to their former residence. A toast! And with slivovitz, sometimes called "plum brandy" for reasons I've never been able to discern because, although it's made from the whole plum, it doesn't taste at all plummy, unless kerosene is plummy. Slivovitz has to be experienced to be believed. I once found myself stranded in a small Macedonian city and contacted the local authorities, who had never met an American. They happily opened the discussion with slivovitz. I must have achieved my goal, however drunk I became, because I notice I'm no longer in Skopje.
Ingrid Thulin is a pretty woman but he features suggest intelligence rather than the beauty of a fashion model. Her irises are a sharp black and her nose is as broad at the top as it is at the bottom. Her voice with its diaphanous Scandinavian overtones is delicious. It skips lightly over the consonants and brushes the vowels with a lilt. She doesn't leave Herbert Lom in the hall. She leaves him in the "hole."
I admire Maximillion Schell. The guy is a marvelous actor, whether in sinister or comic roles, but this is not his movie. Imagine, no matter how much effort it takes, that Arnold Schwarzenegger had all the talent of Lawrence Olivier and Marlon Brando. What good would that talent do Arnold, stuck in movies like "Predator"? Sometimes the role and the associated dialog can defeat even the best of actors. Samantha Eggar delivers the goods.
Actually, the movie turns into a rather ingenious thriller towards the end, once that irrelevant mixed identity nonsense is gotten out of the way, but it's all written and directed so clumsily that the mystery is drained of life.
Ingrid Thulin is a Jewish doctor living in Paris at the outbreak of the war, and Maximillian Schell is her ambitious, chess-playing, Polish paramour. He's needy; she's generous. When war is declared he finally asks her to marry him despite her being Jewish. She's delighted but remarks that she'd be happier if he were marrying her because he loves her, not because he hates the Germans. Schell corrects her. To have married her before would have been conforming. Now he's being defiant. It's an interesting exchange. It takes place while another doctor, Herbert Lom, is standing nearby. Lom -- how you say? -- loves her from afar.
A couple of weakness might as well be gotten out of the way. The musical score is immemorably atonal. Not much effort has been put into period realism. Garments and hair styles look like garments and hair styles looked in 1965. The music is more irritating that evocative, and the director, J. Lee Thompson, uses far too many gigantic close ups, as if this film were designed for the television screen. The makeup underscores what for any perceptive viewer doesn't need underscoring.
On Thulin's return from the concentration camps, her eyes have been turned into two black holes and her hair dusted with flour. It's a pretty careless handling of a subject that deserves very careful attention. However, Lom, who still loves her, restores her to at least a semblance of her former beauty. She still can't bring herself to contact Schell, now living in Paris with Thulin's step daughter, Semantha Eggar, from a previous marriage. As you can see, it's a little complicated. Lom loves Thulin, but Thulin loves Schell, who is shacked up with Eggar and who may or may not have EVER loved Thulin, to whom he is still married, although he's convinced she's dead.
It get even MORE complicated. Thulin had a lot of money but since her remains were never identified -- how could they be? -- the money that should go to her step daughter, Eggar, is being withheld by the French government. So Schell and Eggar meet Thulin and are struck by the resemblance to Schell's wife, still thought to be deceased. They try to enlist her aid in squeezing the money out of the government by having Thulin pretend to be Schell's wife. I hope you're following all this.
So all Thulin has to do, Schell insists anxiously, is pose as his wife "for a short time -- a RELATIVELY short time", forge a few papers in her handwriting, little technicalities like that. Thulin's response is polite enough. That's fine for him. He gets thirty million franks but what does she get? Thirty years in prison. But she's dealing with a determined con man who can make anything sound reasonable. "Oh, come ON, not thirty YEARS!" He scoffs, as if it might only be TWENTY years. She's curious, revolted, and shocked. Both Schell and Eggar soon reveal themselves to be scurrilous weasels, just out for the money.
Thulin, for some reason, finally reveals her true identity and Schell is the consummate manipulator. He gawks and then, angry, almost in tears, he asks, "How could you DO this to me. All those years I've WAITED." It would be funny if Schell played it that way, but he does it straight.
Schell prefers Eggar AND the money, and Thulin now is merely in the way. Two greedy bastards and one innocent victim, a set up for a murder. But I'll get off the plot at this point.
Among the more interesting scenes is the one in which Schell welcomes Thulin (her real identity now restored) to their former residence. A toast! And with slivovitz, sometimes called "plum brandy" for reasons I've never been able to discern because, although it's made from the whole plum, it doesn't taste at all plummy, unless kerosene is plummy. Slivovitz has to be experienced to be believed. I once found myself stranded in a small Macedonian city and contacted the local authorities, who had never met an American. They happily opened the discussion with slivovitz. I must have achieved my goal, however drunk I became, because I notice I'm no longer in Skopje.
Ingrid Thulin is a pretty woman but he features suggest intelligence rather than the beauty of a fashion model. Her irises are a sharp black and her nose is as broad at the top as it is at the bottom. Her voice with its diaphanous Scandinavian overtones is delicious. It skips lightly over the consonants and brushes the vowels with a lilt. She doesn't leave Herbert Lom in the hall. She leaves him in the "hole."
I admire Maximillion Schell. The guy is a marvelous actor, whether in sinister or comic roles, but this is not his movie. Imagine, no matter how much effort it takes, that Arnold Schwarzenegger had all the talent of Lawrence Olivier and Marlon Brando. What good would that talent do Arnold, stuck in movies like "Predator"? Sometimes the role and the associated dialog can defeat even the best of actors. Samantha Eggar delivers the goods.
Actually, the movie turns into a rather ingenious thriller towards the end, once that irrelevant mixed identity nonsense is gotten out of the way, but it's all written and directed so clumsily that the mystery is drained of life.
An unknown classic.
MrPie729 August 2008
One of those excellent films that has never been released on video or DVD. The first time I watched this there were only 2 other channels and both were showing programs I hated at that particular moment, so I ended up watching this film by default. What luck! I was treated to a beautiful, haunting film that featured great performances by Herbert Lom, Samantha Eggar, Maxmillian Schell and Ingrid Thulin. Thulin's performance in particular is flawless. She is utterly convincing as a death camp survivor trying to return to the world. If cable ever gets tired of endlessly re-running "Jaws", "The Breakfast Club" and "It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World" (Excellent films but shown 5 nights a week) and happens to air this true gem, be SURE you see/record it. The second time I caught it was on PBS--20 years after my initial viewing.
Le retour des cendres.
ulicknormanowen28 December 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Hubert Monteilhet was a popular writer in France ,known first for his detective stories ( sometimes racy ,nay bawdy), then for his historical novels dealing with Nero or Joan of Arc .In "le retour des cendres" (exact translation of the title of the movie)which seems to belong to the first genre, Monteilhet actually combines both in a single classy novel:in "le retour des cendres" , the historical background is prominent -much more in the novel than in the movie- ; Monteilhet's books are often epistolary ,a la "liaisons dangereuses ", or based on a diary written by one of the victims : such is the case in "le retour des cendres" .Elisabeth did write a diary sent to the investigating magistrate which calls into question Stan -who is already imprisoned but for other reasons - and Fabi(enne) who is the deported 's daughter (and not stepdaughter like in the movie);After reading the manuscript,the daughter takes her own life.
This precis shows how much the screenplay wanders from the original novel :"based on Monteilhet 's book" the credits read ; the novel was sweetened: a stepdaughter is less scandalous , when both women sleeps with the husband . All that concerns the round-up of Jews and the fact that Stan is a despicable informer is kept to the minimum ,hardly hinted at; the scenes of the bath and of the safe are the screenwriters 'invention.
Ingrid Thulin is the stand-out : her metamorphosis ,from the wreck back from the concentration camps ("I was in the house of pleasures"), to the blond still attractive woman is impressive ;Maximilian Schell is the chess player who uses this game to earn his crust ,but he also makes his good looks work for him : a charmer with a winning smile ,a coward selfish buck ;on the other hand ,Samantha Eggar (who was great in Wyler's "the collector" ) seems left to her own devices and her hysterical playing gets in the way.Her role was fleshed out . Hadn't they done it ,it would have only been a supporting part.
Jack Lee Thompson's film focuses on the thriller , the historical side being only skimmed over.Thulin's portrayal of this survivor is worth a watch though.
This precis shows how much the screenplay wanders from the original novel :"based on Monteilhet 's book" the credits read ; the novel was sweetened: a stepdaughter is less scandalous , when both women sleeps with the husband . All that concerns the round-up of Jews and the fact that Stan is a despicable informer is kept to the minimum ,hardly hinted at; the scenes of the bath and of the safe are the screenwriters 'invention.
Ingrid Thulin is the stand-out : her metamorphosis ,from the wreck back from the concentration camps ("I was in the house of pleasures"), to the blond still attractive woman is impressive ;Maximilian Schell is the chess player who uses this game to earn his crust ,but he also makes his good looks work for him : a charmer with a winning smile ,a coward selfish buck ;on the other hand ,Samantha Eggar (who was great in Wyler's "the collector" ) seems left to her own devices and her hysterical playing gets in the way.Her role was fleshed out . Hadn't they done it ,it would have only been a supporting part.
Jack Lee Thompson's film focuses on the thriller , the historical side being only skimmed over.Thulin's portrayal of this survivor is worth a watch though.
Let's replace interesting with over the top acting.
shiannedog19 October 2021
Worth it for the stunning opening sequence, and the incredible range of Samantha Eggar
pablojdavis6 October 2019
The opening sequence, on a train, is mesmerizing--a four-and-a-half minute masterpiece that weaves a spell right from the start, lacerating you with a terrible, unexpected shock that leads into John Dankworth's strange, haunting theme, a vaguely sinister, slow rumba theme played at what Ray Charles used to call "the death tempo" and with the principal melody initially rendered on the harpsichord. (Though the genre and rhythm are quite different, the part played by the musical theme in this film is vaguely reminiscent of the zither theme in Orson Welles's "Third Man.") The film never quite delivers on the promise of its stunning beginning, and the way the heroine keeps coming back for more punishment (a little love, a lot of betrayal) from Maximilian Schell's character, suave but an evident stinker, strains credulity. But Samantha Eggar's many-shaded performance, ranging from supremely confident and skilled physician to brutalized concentration-camp survivor--and quite a bit in between--is riveting.
Excellent thriller
tansin18 February 2002
This film has haunted me right from the start of its release in 1965, thanks to the top players, the tense plot, the effective direction by J. Lee Thompson and the music from John Dankworth. But most importantly (the play of) Samantha Eggar and the melodramatic role she plays in the film are the main reason of my lasting interest in this film. The famous bathroom scenes with her are unforgettable.
Impossible to find, Impossible to forget.
hammerogod-496-13745121 November 2018
Classy mid 60s thriller with plenty of meat in the burger and almost no cheese.
"Return" goes to all the familiar places but never lingers long on cliches.
I remember the theater cards in the lobby saying "Nobody enters the theater after Fabienne enters her bath".
It's twisty and pushes the plausibility envelope some, but the ride is good enough to cover the bumps.
This is one of the last films to use lobby hype, and it didn't need any hype. Ingrid Thulin shines in a truly convincing way, what a talent. Samantha Eggar simmers with heat and hate. Schell and Lom both set their person bars a little higher in this one..
Bottom Line: Just Find It And Watch It.
This is one of the last films to use lobby hype, and it didn't need any hype. Ingrid Thulin shines in a truly convincing way, what a talent. Samantha Eggar simmers with heat and hate. Schell and Lom both set their person bars a little higher in this one..
Bottom Line: Just Find It And Watch It.
A great film.
skoiyase15 September 2000
Why is it that films that you really love are never shown on the television? I remember this film was considered pretty risque for 1665. I think the advertising went something like, NO ONE WILL BE ALLOWED TO ENTER THE THEATER ONCE FABBIE ENTER HER BATH... Wish I could see this one again!
Grim homecoming
MikeMagi13 April 2011
I'm not quite the fan of this thriller that several other IMDb contributors are. I agree that it has some first-rate acting by Ingrid Thulin as a concentration camp survivor still smitten with her wastrel husband after four years of hell, Samantha Egger as her homicidal stepdaughter and Maxmilian Schell as the penniless scoundrel both women crave. And there's no question that the sensual bathtub murder, complete with a touch of foot fetishism, was well ahead of its time. But from the symbolic opening (a child falling off a speeding railway train while Thulin looks stoically on) through the climactic get-rich-quick scheme, the film is unrelentingly grim. J. Lee Thompson's direction, which assumes that slow-moving and suspenseful are synonyms doesn't help much. And in the end, the characters (aside from Herbert Lom's likable doctor) are not only unsympathetic but don't make much sense.
Let's see this one again!
edward-miller-131 July 2003
I just want to briefly agree with the previous comments here. I haven't seen this movie in over thirty years, since high school, but it stands out vividly in my memory. Intriguing story beautifully acted by three outstanding stars. Why do films fall by the wayside? I hope this isn't one of the lost films that we keep hearing about. I guess our only hope of seeing this now is if TCM broadcasts it....or if it becomes a Criterion DVD release. Criterion has been wonderful in giving us beautiful prints of rare or hard to find classics. If anyone hears of Return from the Ashes returning from the ashes (LOL) please post the info here.
Losing one game of chess too much
clanciai17 October 2021
The action of this film is after the war, when Ingrid Thulin returns home to Paris after having spent too many years in a German concentration camp (Dachau) as a Jewess. Just before being taken away by the Nazis she had been married to a Polish chess player (Maximilian Schell), and when she returns she tries to call him up and reaches him all right, but she hears he has a girl in bed, so she doesn't identify herself but hangs up and leaves him hanging. What's worse, that girl in his bed happens to be her step-daughter.
The question rises, like in so many similar cases after too long an absence, whether she should have come home at all. As things turn out, that question is relevant indeed, but she chooses to face the challenge.
The intrigue develops into a tricky nest of infected relationships, as the step-daughter (Samantha Eggar) turns up to be no good girl at all, and Doctor Bovard, (Ingrid Thulin's colleague, Herbert Lom) immediately recognizes her as a case for psychiatry. All four make excellent performances, and although two of the characters are really revoltingly bad, it's worth watching their acting. You might have remonstrances on the way, but the finale will patch over all objections, as the consistency of the development of all four characters is absolute. John Lee Thompson, both director and producer, has apparently tried to make something of an ultimate noir and almost succeeded. The film is a bit longish, the tempo is a bit slow, but it is efficient enough anyway. The black-and-white character enhances the true mood of a great noir.
The question rises, like in so many similar cases after too long an absence, whether she should have come home at all. As things turn out, that question is relevant indeed, but she chooses to face the challenge.
The intrigue develops into a tricky nest of infected relationships, as the step-daughter (Samantha Eggar) turns up to be no good girl at all, and Doctor Bovard, (Ingrid Thulin's colleague, Herbert Lom) immediately recognizes her as a case for psychiatry. All four make excellent performances, and although two of the characters are really revoltingly bad, it's worth watching their acting. You might have remonstrances on the way, but the finale will patch over all objections, as the consistency of the development of all four characters is absolute. John Lee Thompson, both director and producer, has apparently tried to make something of an ultimate noir and almost succeeded. The film is a bit longish, the tempo is a bit slow, but it is efficient enough anyway. The black-and-white character enhances the true mood of a great noir.
A well made film, worth seeing!
RodrigAndrisan28 April 2020
J. Lee Thompson, an exceptional director, very gifted, prolific. He worked a lot with Charles Bronson. And with many other actors, achieving success after success. This "Return from the Ashes" is a drama, an introspection into the depths of the human soul. And it's also a thriller. All 4 actors are formidable: Ingrid Thulin, a special beauty, Samantha Eggar, an absolute beauty, Maximilian Schell and Herbert Lom.
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