Le Corbeau (1943)

Le Corbeau (1943)
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A small French village is plagued by a poison-pen writer, whose principal target is Doctor Germain (Pierre Fresnay). The vitriolic letters wreak so much havoc that soon neighbor turns upon neighbor. Eventually, even the doctor himself becomes one of the suspects, as the townspeople are driven to commit paranoia-fueled crimes and suicides. The actual culprit is revealed to be one of the least likely candidates. Though it can now be seen to be a subliminal indictment of the paranoia fomented by the Nazi occupation of France, Le Corbeau (aka The Raven) was condemned as unpatriotic after the liberation, and director Henri-Georges Clouzot was banned from filmmaking until 1947. Based on a story by Clouzot and Louis Chavance, Le Corbeau was remade in Hollywood by Otto Preminger as The 13th Letter (1951). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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Starring:
Pierre FresnayPierre Larquey, (more)
Director(s):
Henri-Georges Clouzot
Format(s):
DVD
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Synopsis of Le Corbeau

A small French village is plagued by a poison-pen writer, whose principal target is Doctor Germain (Pierre Fresnay). The vitriolic letters wreak so much havoc that soon neighbor turns upon neighbor. Eventually, even the doctor himself becomes one of the suspects, as the townspeople are driven to commit paranoia-fueled crimes and suicides. The actual culprit is revealed to be one of the least likely candidates. Though it can now be seen to be a subliminal indictment of the paranoia fomented by the Nazi occupation of France, Le Corbeau (aka The Raven) was condemned as unpatriotic after the liberation, and director Henri-Georges Clouzot was banned from filmmaking until 1947. Based on a story by Clouzot and Louis Chavance, Le Corbeau was remade in Hollywood by Otto Preminger as The 13th Letter (1951). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Theatrical Feature Running Time:
91 mins

Complete Cast of Le Corbeau


Director(s):
Henri-Georges Clouzot
Writer(s):
Louis ChavanceHenri-Georges Clouzot
Categories:
Mystery & Suspense
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    Member Reviews
     
    Keith G.

    An odd but potent mix of a quiet non-violent but very tense noir thriller, a deeply dark humored, sometimes blackly comic look at human nature, and a political tale of moral hypocrisy in a small town. But by the end I was riveted, moved and provoked. I was even more impressed when I learned the history of the film. Made while France was under occupation by the Nazis, the theme of neighbor turning against neighbor takes on an even deeper and more chilling context. A film with no hero and many villains, it is challenging, well acted and physically beautiful. How sadly ironic that film-maker Clouzot was castigated after the war for being a Nazi collaborator for making the film under the thumb of the Nazis when this is about as clearly an anti-collaborationist film as one could imagine.

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    Bruce M.

    Entertaining, but viewers are forced to accept too many things on faith, In such a small village, the perpetrator would have to be seen, at least occasionally.

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    Dennis K.

    This was the movie that was on the cinema marquee in the movie Inglorious Basterds. I wanted to see this movie to compare with Clouzot's Wages Of Fear (1957) which is one of my all time favs. The movie was OK but particularly interesting because of the circumstances in which it was concieved and brought forth.

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