The Red Inn

The Red Inn (1951) is a pitch-black French comedy with Fernandel, and you can watch it online on iFILM. On a winter night a stagecoach gets stranded at a remote mountain inn whose owners have a long habit of poisoning and robbing their guests.

The catch: a kindly monk (Fernandel) and his young novice end up bunking there too. In the confessional the innkeeper's wife cheerfully hands him the full account of the family's murders — and the seal of confession ties his hands completely. Saving the other travelers without betraying a word spoken in confession spirals into desperate slapstick, made worse by the novice falling head over heels for the owners' daughter. Look for a young Yves Montand in a bit part as the coachman.

Claude Autant-Lara aimed it as a sharp swipe at hypocrisy and church morality — which is exactly what got it scolded at the time. French grand guignol where horror and laughter walk arm in arm. Stream The Red Inn (1951) online on iFILM.