While enjoying coffee with a friend, poet Orphée (Jean Marais) becomes involved in an altercation with some students that results in tragedy and police involvement. A woman arrives in a Rolls Royce and insists he join her, ostensibly as a witness after she has an injured man placed in the vehicle. Assuming they’re headed to a hospital, he's surprised to discover the man—Cegeste (Edouard Dermithe)—is already deceased, and that the woman (María Casares) is not who she claims to be. Those familiar with the Orpheus story from Greek mythology will likely anticipate much of what follows as he gets drawn into Death’s schemes. The situation becomes more complicated when she develops an interest in him, and his wife Eurydice's (Marie Déa) chauffeur, Heurtebise (Francois Périer), finds himself falling for her. It creates a tangled mess. Now in the underworld, a tribunal of death determines that events haven’t unfolded as expected, and husband and wife are to be returned to their world—but only if he refrains from looking at her, or else she will return. I thought this condition was somewhat harsh considering they hadn't done anything wrong and weren’t initial targets—but it was the agreement. Will they succeed? Do they even desire to? I felt Marais could be stiff occasionally; he might have been suitable for a role like "Tarzan"—however, here he has good chemistry with both Déa and a remarkably compelling Casares. Cocteau successfully weaves ancient mythology into a modern setting, using uncomplicated visual effects—and mirrors—to create the idea of a parallel world of “Hades” without it appearing overtly artificial. He also avoids excessive romanticism in this love story. Next time you see a pair of rubber gloves, though—be cautious!

Source on TMDB