Welcome to suspense cinema 101. Forget that this is beautifully restored and packed with extras. Diabolique is one of the most influential suspense films ever made and deserves the Bluray treatment and Criterion care. Diabolique is not Henri-Georges Clouzot's masterpiece. Wages of Fear (1953) gets that spot. But it is unthinkable that anyone taking time to see one would not also take time to see the other. Both are brilliant, with Wages having aged a little better. The constant modern imitations and homages to the many surprises in Diabolique's story has robbed the film of it's raw power for new generations but plenty to satisfy those who simply love a good story well told.
Two women conspire to rid themselves of their inhumanly cruel husband/lover at a small boarding school. But their murderous plan undergoes one savage twist after another until it becomes apparent that even the cleverest of murderers can't figure everything out. The chilling ending goes by so quickly that you'll miss it if you blink.
To say much more would ruin the film for first time viewers but the extras here make this disc virtually definitive. In fact the interview with film critic Kim Newman is simply must see for anyone wishing to understand the place of Diabolique in film history. The Bluray also comes with a nice thick booklet full selected scene commentary by French-film scholar Kelley Conwayand a new introduction by Serge Bromberg co-director of Henri-Georges Clouzout's "Inferno" which has also recently been released on Bluray by the Criterion Collection.