Classic French Cinema Discussion Thread

Hi all,when I picked up the 4 Moreau film of 1957 in September,I also got hold of a handful of other French films from the year. Despite hearing about Henri Calef for years,I've not seen any of his works. Going in with low expectations after reading the IMDb reviews,I finally saw my first Calef film.

“Even the stock-market reacts like a barometer to your anger. “

Les violents / Coffin by Post (1957) 8



Caped in a silk Jazz score from Marcel Landowski, co-writer/(with Jacques Chabannes and André’s Haguet and Legrand) director Henri Calef & cinematographer Jean Isnard dress the Tercelin household in lush Art Deco stylisation, shimmering in long panning shots across the rooms and down the secret passage ways. Breaking out of the Art Deco, Calef neatly balances this elegance with a Film Noir ruggedness, lit from the Giallo-style mini-coffins landing in the hands of the next victim, and a tastefully done topless scene with Françoise Fabian, (a rare thing to do in this era)to the misty outdoor scenes gliding on fear of Inspecteur Malouvier sinking with the killer.

Holding Malouvier back from getting involved in the first half, the writers present an excellent family affair Film Noir, where the Tercelin’s extended family feud fuels revenge as they trade underhanded double-dealings that get nailed as they each start being posted to their coffins. Becoming caught in the middle of this challenging family matter, the writers tensely have Malouvier chop down the cold shoulders from the Tiercelin’s and unveiling their criminal stash. Met with cold glances from her broken dad Pierre, (a great, worn-down Fernand Ledoux) Françoise Fabian gives this Noir a welcomed slice of glamour as nightclub dancing Evelyne, with Fabian making visible Evelyne’s hopes in breaking out of the shadow over her family. Finding his fellow officers less than keen to dig up the family matters,Paul Meurisse gives a very good performance as Malouvier, with Meurisse capturing Malouvier’s thoughtful silence, in order to hear a coffin get posted.

Hi all,after recently seeing Coffin by Post (1957) I decided to view René Clair's creation from that year:

The Gates of Paris (1957) 10

“The newspapers would laugh if they knew I can’t hurt a girl!”



Pre-dating the British “Kitchen Sink” films by a decade, co-writer/(with Jean Aurel) directing auteur René Clair splashes his distinctive surreal aspects into the sink of Poetic Realism. Whilst Juju listens in on local mutterings, Clair slides pass to dip through the looking glass/ window to follow the play fighting of children which uncannily matches the locals descriptions of Barbier’s crimes. Keeping Barbier out of sight in The Artist house, Clair holds down his surreal stylising to instead give the poetic crane shots down the winding streets of the town and the whip-pans down to the loft an earthy, proto- Kitchen Sink grit, rubbed from the house being given a confined, run-down appearance.

Opening the gate to Juju and The Artist friendship in their adaptation of René Fallet’s novel, the screenplay by Clair and Jean Aurel tantalisingly give plenty of breathing space for the friendship to gradual cover the screen as Artist and Juju have tiffs in the house they share, but make up by singing songs in the pub. Putting a dent in the friendship with the run-in of Barbier, the writers subtlety place a Film Noir long-con bubbling in the background to explore the themes of loneliness and mistrust, poured from Juju placing a much greater level of trust on Barbier’s “friendship” than The Artist, and Juju’s misplaced love for pub barmaid Maria.

Bringing a real warmth when hanging out together, Pierre Brasseur and Georges Brassens give fantastic performances which compliment each other, via the bohemian vibes Brassens wraps The Artist in,and the slowly sinking himself into exile edge Brasseur gives Juju. Getting in the middle of the friends, cute Dany Carrel gives an innocent sweetness to kind-hearted Maria, whilst Henri Vidal keeps wanted criminal Barbier’s back up against the wall, as the gates of Paris close.

Hi all,after Coffin by Post (1957) turned out much better than expected,I decided to watch another French Noir I've had laying around for ages.



Ballad for a Hoodlum (1963) 6

Packing the suitcase when the French New Wave (FNW) was reaching its peak, co-writer/(with Jacqueline Sundstrom/ Alexandre Tabor and Marcel Moussy) director Claude-Jean Bonnardot & cinematographer Jean Badal cross the rural wilderness of the Film Noir with the fizzy youthfulness of the FNW. Shadowing Vivant’s eye-catching eagle jacket with side shots showcasing his isolated state with an exploding suitcase on the outskirts of town, Bonnardot twists FNW stylisation into the mix, with jagged jump-cuts and swaying camera moves building the pressure up of the Film Noir atmosphere.

Pre-dating “The man given tasks to do round town” outline which would re-appear in the likes of the Transporter flicks and Drive, the writers do very well at linking each task Vivant is given with his main mission of taking the suitcase across the border. Revealing the contents of the case, the writers crack the collective, calm hoodlum image of Vivant with a sweaty anger of being misused by his bosses. Kicking dirt into the faces of those who’ve set him up, Laurent Terzieff gives an excellent performance by peeling away Vivant calm, collective manner to reveal the simmering fury as the hoodlum performs a ballad.

Hi all,with it being the holiday season & Criterion having just put out his Film Noir Panique (1947) (highly recommended) I decided to watch Duvivier's X-Mas and New Year-set film:

Maria Chapdelaine (1934)



“You always say we’re lost in the woods,far from the parishes, never seeing a soul.”
8.

Sailing to Canada with a cast and crew from France, co-writer/(with Gabriel Boissy) directing auteur Julien Duvivier lands with style in vast wide-shots breathing in the great earthy outdoors of Quebec. As fellow IMDber dbdumonteil mentions in his terrific review, Duvivier cuts down the fir trees with an almost musical stylisation, layering the soundtrack with the national heritage of the locals in songs such as A la Claire Fontaine and Marianne s'en Va-t-Au -Moulin swaying to the gatherings of the towns people. Continuing to build the major visual motif across his credits of impending tragedy laying await behind the sun, Duvivier fills Maria full of grace with glowing, poetic white lighting, and Paradis’s walk in the rugged terrain being followed in a tightly-held tracking shot.

For the first of (currently) three filmed adaptations of Louis Hémon’s novel, (who died at just 32, via getting struck by a train when walking near the tracks) the screenplay by Boissy & Duvivier wrap this version in a magical elegance, thanks to Chapdelaine and Paradis’s blossoming love being balanced by the shadow of death getting ever nearer to Chapdelaine’s family. Teaming up for the first of seven times with Duvivier, the fresh-face Jean Gabin gives a very good turn as Paradis, who is given a surprisingly sensitive, delicate edge by Gabin. Looking angelic in close-up, beautiful Madeleine Renaud gives an enticing performance as Chapdelaine, with Renaud subtly casting a down-cast glimmer across her face, as Maria finds herself not full of grace.

This one has an English director and cinematographer (Tony Richardson and David Watkin), but I think it counts as a French film:

Mademoiselle (1966)

Delighted you got so much from it mate  

Tis why we are here my good man, to learn and share 

Awesome to read that you enjoyed Eyes so much AJ. One of the things that I find most unique about the title is how Georges Franju
could go from grotesque set-pieces, (on the commentary to the BFI Blu, Tim Lucas mentions that Franju said he wanted to tighten the screws and give the audience no release.) to the symbolic flight of fantasy final, and make each feel like they are building on the opening corpse dumping.



Whilst not being a classic like Eyes, Judex (1963) (Masters of Cinema/Criterion) is a really fun, stylish "caper" from Franju.



 

Hi all,after spending most of the week with a really bad flu, (which has still not fully gone)I decided to really get back into viewings by at last opening this set:



And watching my first Jacques Rivette film.

Duelle (1976) 7



"Dreams are the aquarium of the night."

Complimented by interesting interviews from two members of the cast, Arrow present a splendid transfer, with the layered soundtrack being clean and the picture sharp, whilst retaining a film grain quality.

Working more from a script than he had done before, (lines of dialogue would be thrown out to the cast just before shooting began) the screenplay by co-writer/(with Eduardo de Gregorio and the directors wife Marilu Parolini ) directing auteur Jacques Rivette fittingly has a free-flowing rhythm that gives it the feeling of unfolding in the moment, as The Queen of the Night fights The Queen of the Sun for a diamond to stay on earth, which shines them into slithering round the deserted night life of Paris. Shattering whatever little reality there was, the writers keep the thread of the diamond fight as a solid line for the flights of fantasy to leap from.

Placing the two Queens (brilliantly played by Juliet Berto and Bulle Ogier) in a fight to stay on earth for more than 40 days a years, director Rivette & cinematographer William Lubtchansky take the starkness of the French New Wave (FNW) and shade it onto the Sci-Fi and Fantasy in the streets of Paris being laid to a minimalist appearance, as the Queens fight against a backdrop of lone, scattered figures round the streets of Paris. Kept backed by a nicely underscored improvised piano score from André Dauchy and Roger Fugen, Rivette blurs the lines between fantasy and reality with rough-edge FNW hand-held tracking shots following each grasp for the diamond. Symbolically breaking a mirror 70 mins in, Rivette superbly goes all-out for a surrealist stylisation final. Lighting the queens in shimmering colours, Rivette creates an incredibly eerie impression of the diamond fight taking place in reflections of a lost in time and dissociate society, as the Queens face their duelle.