French filmmaker Julien Duvivier had trouble regaining his popularity after the war; thus, he tried all sorts of subject matter, hoping to land the one plotline that would reap box-office success. In Au Royaume des Cieux, Duvivier aims his sights at a girl's reformatory. Falsely imprisoned after resisting the advances of a wealthy man, Maria (Suzanne Cloutier) is subjected to the spiteful behavior of unbalanced reform-school headmistress Mlle. Chamblas (Suzy Prim). When Maria's true love Pierre (Serge Reggiani) arrives with an escape plan at the ready, the other inmates try to help the couple elude the authorities. A tense, fog-laden climax caps this well-crafted melodrama. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi