In Marcel Carns rich, literary romance from 1945 ('France's answer to "Gone with the Wind'! Haneke erects four walls to keep out the rest of the world, contained almost entirely within one apartment over a period of some weeks and months. As the scientists frantically try to trace their missing guinea pig, fragments of his past surface momentarily, recurringly. A perverse valentine to this coolest of Gallic beauties, Belle de jour stars Catherine Deneuve as Sverine, a Parisian housewife dressed in Yves Saint Laurent, who is married to Pierre (Sorel), a handsome, dull doctor. A number of cross-references apply: Reeds The Key, likewise a melancholy tale of doomed love set against a background of rough seas and salvage vessels; Le Quai des Brumes, the two stars' initial pairing, Gabin here reprising his blend of the tender and the explosive, and Morgan again entering the movie trailing clouds of sadness behind her; and Fassbinders Querelle though this ones set in the real Brest, grey and wind-lashed, but still, cinematically, one of the capital cities of desolation. After she dies in childbirth he volunteers to take part in a dangerous mission during the war. Please contact us at members@americamedia.org with any questions. drama is entirely aural (a play of off-screen voices blending with Carlos dAlessios utterly compulsive score), and the elegant visuals counterpoint it by creating an atmosphere of sumptuous enervation. The film wasnt restored till the 1950s. Its experimental and free-wheeling in design Varda gives us overlapping dialogue, parodic inserts, a documentarists eye mixed with a painters, found sound and Michel Legrands songs, and juxtaposes frippery with political reality. Comedy. | Throughout his professional life, Frances Henri-Georges Clouzot suffered comparisons to Alfred Hitchcock the former's critical reputation languished for it, and he took it hard. CC, The third of Rohmers six moral tales, and the first of his films to achieve wide recognition. Elina Labourdette, Mild-mannered, unemployed music teacher Clement Mathieu is hired as a house master at the Fond de lEtang boarding school for troubled children. Bressons actors models are non-professional and strictly coached; but there is no mistaking the orgasmic pleasure that sweeps the face of indolent, penurious student Michel (Martin LaSalle) as he succeeds on his first dip at Longchamps racecourse; nor his despair as his world begins to fall apart. Crime, Drama. Produced by channel FR3 and filmed in 1969 as a TV movie, Du Ct dOrout is a small masterpiece of levity and improvisation, a sweet, sensual gem of a film. Yes, his contrast of the glorious awfulness of the Arpels automated modernistic house with Hulots disordered bohemianism is simplistic. Superb. And while director Michel Hazanavicius is faithful to the silent form there are title cards and luminous black-and-white cinematography hes not afraid to subvert the rules of the genre: twice, the film breaks the no-sound barrier, to striking effect. Although unostentatious, Sautets camera work is subtly masterful, producing some very memorable images (a dour-faced Yves Montand on the telephone, filmed through a pane that reflects his laughing friends). But the characterisations are turned on their heads. From nostalgic and subversive locals who capture the real essence of life in this miraculous city to wide-eyed foreign visitorsriffing about what it is that makes it such a magnet for outsiders, these are the absolute best songs about Paris according to us. Director: Drama, Romance. . Drama. Hes lived in Canada and Chile, enjoyed a few girlfriends, but now hes single, serious and more committed to his religion and future. Contents. The face we see most is, naturally, Falconettis as Joan, and its hard to imagine a performer evincing physical anguish and spiritual exaltation more palpably. Stars: Just out of jail, afraid he cant cut it in the underworld anymore, involved in an act of revenge that leaves him with a nasty taste in his mouth, Reggiani finds Crohem lurking in ambush when he takes on his next job. Jean Debucourt, 91 min Stars: 1915: Slaughter at Gallipoli; first use of gas on the Western Front; Lusitania sunk. Director: | Perhaps strangest of all is that the protagonists girlfriend seems for most of the film to be the only young female in town, but thats a very minor criticism when compared to writer/director Dumonts tough, confident handling of mood, milieu, pace, performance and theme. An absurd montage, combining hundreds of clips from a dozen American movies (including Jeremiah Johnson, All the Presidents Men and Rio Bravo), this surreal film is surprisingly entertaining, mostly because writer-directors Michel Hazanavicius and Dominique Mzerette really push the idea to extremes: all dialogue has been absurdly rewritten and dubbed back into French. From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia "French films" redirects here. Once you start digging into the history of French film, though, youll discover pleasures unlike those found anywhere else in world cinema. Yvette Guilbert, Reminiscent of Roziers earlier, career-making film Du Ct dOrout, Maine Ocan occupies an equal, if not larger, place in Roziers oeuvre. The filmmaking is wildly inventive, but not in a clever-clogs manner. Against all odds, the ensemble is certain that the show must go on; those odds include their Jewish theatrical manager whos gone into hiding, a protagonist whos a member of the Resistance, and the more and more restraining Nazi supervision. Dita Parlo, Simone Signoret, A young accountant (a still-flushed-cheeked Isabelle Huppert, in one of her most sensual and mysteriously protean performances) leaves her incredulous, angered bourgeois husband for an earthy, unemployed petty ex-con (a superbly equine and cocksure Grard Depardieu). | Franois Truffaut Striking a match to keep warm, she sees things in the flame. Demys second musical film after The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, Une Chambre en Ville once again demonstrates the directors ability to whip even the most banal. The march has always been about an end to Roe, but its also about an end to abortion.. TH, You couldnt imagine a more discreet tribute to the heroes of the wartime French Resistance than this terrific late-60s thriller by the ex-Maquis member Melville, the director best known for his gangster masterpieces like The Samourai. Louis Jouvet, Each grotesquely larger-than-life inhabitant of the scrofulous tenement has his own little story; visually, the film evokes Gilliam, Lynch, the Coens and Carn, but the allusions never get in the way of the nightmarish humour. Stars: Luxury Experts: WP Diamonds is considered a worldwide expert for selling diamonds, engagement rings, luxury jewelry, watches, handbags and sneakers. Also, as censorship forced filmmakers to avoid matters relating to the war and domestic social problems, movies approached comedy and romance with impressive performances. Robert Bresson Financed by the Vicomte de Noailles, a dream patron who loyally pronounced the film exquisite and delicious, even as Right-wing extremists were pelting it with ink and stink bombs, this is a jagged memento of that Golden Age before directors forgot the art of filming erotica (the celebrated toe-sucking is sexier by far than almost anything since), the revolutionary avant-garde lost its sense of humour, and surrealism itself fell prey to advertising-agency chic. Dolly Scal, Not Rated A dutiful trip to the theatre is a revelation. By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions. Paul Mesnier. His colleague is unimpressed: All that singings a pain I prefer movies. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, its safe to say, would not be for him: every line of dialogue (including his own complaint) is sung to Michel Legrands melodious songbird score. With Truffaut as co-producer, comparisons with The 400 Blowsare inevitable, but theres very little resemblance between the two films except in theme and refusal to sentimentalise. Sylvie, One might describe Lge dOr as 63 minutes of coitus interruptus, a scabrous essay on Eros and civilisation, wherein a couple is constantly prised apart from furious love-making by the police, high society and, above all, the Church. | Five unemployed penniless workers win 100,000 Francs with the national lottery. | | Down the mean streets of film noir walk hardboiled detectives, slinky femme fatales, and all manner of corrupt and brutal criminals. Silly and meandering, the film is a loose parody of Citizen Kane and although for legal reasons it has never been sold on VHS or DVD, Le Grand Dtournement has slowly gathered a following, achieving cult-comedy status in France. Notes. The films frequent comedy erupts when Bernadettes humility exposes others wickedness and folly. It would be hard to imagine a more courageous project; harder still to find one executed with the kind of wit and haunting elegance that have made Godard so revered. When she hears of a high-class madam (Page) who operates a brothel out of her apartment, Sverine takes a day job as a classy whore servicing middle-aged businessmen. criticism when compared to writer/director Dumonts tough, confident handling of mood, milieu, pace, performance and theme. Its possible to overstate the extent to which all this is a bunch of fun: if shown, as it often is, in one great unnatural marathon, it can be sheer torture. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. $0.04M, Not Rated Wanted by the authorities, he reunites with a hip American journalism student and attempts to persuade her to run away with him to Italy. Centreing on a lavish country house party given by the Marquis de la Chesnaye and his wife (Dalio, Gregor), the film effects audacious slides from melodrama into farce, from realism into fantasy, and from comedy into tragedy. Remaking James Tobacks 1978 Fingers, director Jacques Audiard (Read My Lips) has turned the story of Tom (Duris), a petty Parisian crook specialising in real-estate swindles and classical piano, into a melancholy study of alienation and reinvention. NF, Jean-Paul Belmondo mooches up to Samuel Fuller at a party and, naturally, asks him his thoughts on cinema. Franois Lafarge, Its a casting coup that pays off as the drama moves towards its quietly heartbreaking final moments. Josette Day, Some claim that it They razz each other about films, cartoons, nothing in particular, but always the gun hovers over them like a death sentence, the black-and-white focal point for all the hatred they meet with, and all they can give back. Melvilles film had a major influence in Hollywood: Delon lying on his bed is echoed in Taxi Driver, and Paul Schrader might have remade Le Samoura as American Gigolo. As the French were quick to see, le noir meant the Negro, too. Strange insights into the effects of racism and the complicity of its victims, embellished with black wit and an elegant visual sense. The term film noir stuck. A subtle, breezy comedy of manners, Klapischs follow-up to When the Cats Away may not have quite the novelty and charm of that work, but otherwise its a fresh and unassuming treat. | Duris is a handsome performer who achieved success in popular comedies; here, he pulls off his parts perilous balancing act beautifully. We learn in flashback about how they met, married, and how she failed to adapt her lifestyle to See full summary, Director: GA, Directors: Michel Hazanavicius and Dominique Mzerette, In 1993, Warner Bros. authorised Canal+ to use clips from WBs back catalogue, resulting in Canal+'s Le Grand Dtournement, one of the weirdest, most hallucinatory films of all time. A former magician, Georges Mlis created his silent film A Trip to the Moon in 1902, just six years after the Lumire Brothers legendary first projection. Most will be swept off their feet by Michel Legrands scintillating jazz-pop score, charismatic supporting turns from Gene Kelly, Danielle Darrieux and Michel Piccoli, and predominantly Demys own infectious joie de vivre. The mayor and other civil authorities (including one played with sinister ennui by the great Vincent Price) meet in the Cafe du Progres to plot against the peasant girls. Kassovitz has made only one film before (the droll race-comedy Mtisse), but La Haine puts him right at the front of the field: this is virtuosic, on-the-edge stuff, as exciting as anything weve seen from the States in ages, and more thoroughly engaged with the reality it describes. BR, Fifteen-year-old Suzanne (Bonnaire) seems unable to progress beyond a rather doleful promiscuity in her relations with boys. The bravery she has shown throughout this film is not enough: She needs rescue. The film is, finally, affecting, thanks to a seemingly intuitive understanding of colour, movement and composition, and to an ability to draw from earlier films without ever seeming plagiaristic. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. Max Ophls Stars: | 5. Comedy. Catherine Hessling, Meanwhile the thief seeks the love of a young woman, who is held emotionally captive by her slumlord family. Marcel Pagnol NB, A delightfully preposterous thriller (the McGuffin is some stolen Amazonian treasure), wittier than any of the Bond spoofs that subsequently flooded the market and a good deal racier than Raiders of the Lost Ark. They razz each other about films, cartoons, nothing in particular, but always the gun hovers over them like a death sentence, the black-and-white focal point for all the hatred they meet with, and all they can give back. | And sure, a lot of it can be hard for non-scholars to grasp pioneering New Wavers like Jean-Luc Godard and Agns Varda prided themselves on it. BW. | DT, Making use of locals instead of professional actors lends authenticity to this impressive look at a group of otherwise innocuous teenage lads in a boring northern French town (Bailleul in Flanders), driven to violence by a mixture of boredom, jealousy, macho pride and ingrained racism. Sacha Guitry Jean Renoir 113 min A small gem, polished to perfection by an unassuming professional. KU, Classically simple but relentlessly probing thriller, set in a French village shadowed by the presence of a compulsive killer. With dialogues by writer Marc Cholodenko and a jazzy saxophone score by Barney Wilen, the Les Baisers de Secours has all the spontaneity and cool sensibility of a Cassavetes flick. A 1940s French film is one of the most Catholic horror movies ever made Eve Tushnet December 07, 2018 Jennifer Jones and Vincent Price in The Song of Bernadette' Romantic intrigues, social rivalries, and human foibles are all observed with an unblinking eye that nevertheless refuses to judge. 1915: Slaughter at Gallipoli ; first use of gas on the Front. That pays off as the French were quick to see, le noir meant Negro! ( Bonnaire ) seems unable to progress beyond a rather doleful promiscuity in relations! To the theatre is a revelation the scientists frantically try to trace missing! Use of gas on the Western Front ; Lusitania sunk with black wit and an visual! 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