Loosely based of Honore De Balzacs two short stories ,this is the second of the two movies actor Pierre Blanchar directed As you do not change a winning team,this movie enjoys again Christian Matras s remarkable cinematography and Arthur Honnegers superb score Un Seul Amour is IMHO ,superior to the former effort 1A screenplay influenced by Citizen Kane the heroines niece inherits her castle and ,with her companion,tries to understand who her relative really wassometimes flouting chronology the scene of the deathbed,with a stunning editing which masterfully introduces the flashbacksand the famous last word Rosebud is replaced by the sentence Clara whispers just before she dies Ive got something else to tell 2The romantic escapist movie of the occupation days is given a unusually inventive treatment the hero gives up his career and his love sacrifices her passion for dancingthe first scene is a ballet ,and Matrass camera captures her dance in the early morning grass ,before she meets her husband But they know their bliss will be short lived there are happy people,says Clara ,who do not want other people to be so 3Other influences showthat of Henry Hathaways Peter Ibbetson a dreamlike sequence was already present in Blanchars first efforthere a happy end , in the hereafter ,where the two ghosts meet in the garden where they were happy ,proves that love triumphs in the end ,because ,in spite of their faults,Clara and her beloved husband remained true to themselves and even Poes Gothic horror theres a mysterious door,no one is allowed to open because it hides things better left unsaid Gerard had a door bricked up ,and the crucifix the dying Clara keeps in her bed causes,in a strange manner,her death Like in the great escapist movies of the occupation days ,Carnes Les Visiteurs Du Soir1942 and DelannoyCocteaus LEternel Retour 1943 ,in Un Seul Amour ,theres no way out for the doomed loversthey cannot survive in the world of the living ,which in those days was truer than ever,they are people legends are made of The impressive last picture follows Claras fingers as she reaches for the sundial Excellent performances by the director and his leading lady ,Micheline Preslesgood support by Gabrielle Fontan and Julien Bertheau An unsung gem of the occupation days