Gerard Desarthe Movies

In this detective and crime comedy, the heir to a large fortune is an unknown, and nobody knows him or where he can be found. An occasional musician, Fred plans to pass himself off as that man. It's a goofy idea, but maybe it will work. However, before he can set up the con properly, he learns that his loser of a brother has, inexplicably, just gotten his first job in years as one of the detectives who is searching for the heir. At one time, the two brothers played together in an amateur rock band, but as a result of a heated disagreement about how to play the Ray Noble standard "Cherokee", the two haven't spoken in years. It's going to take a lot of persuading to pull this scam off. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Uranus is set in a post-war French village that has been all but obliterated by the bombing. Jean-Pierre Marielle plays a middle-class family man who agrees to shelter many of those who've lost their homes. The polyglot of political beliefs held by these new tenants sows the seeds of discontent. The most vocal of the town's dissidents are the Communists, who terrify everyone with threats of turning in collaborators to the French Forces of the Interior. The only person in town afraid of no one is hulking innkeeper Gerard Depardieu, whose ultimate death uncovers much of the hypocrisy disguising itself as patriotism in the village. While never exactly sympathizing with the collaborators, Uranus is careful to point out that the "unofficial" executions of these unfortunates was no more morally acceptable than the Nazi invasion that encouraged collaboration in the first place. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this undistinguished clichéd thriller, a convict tries to go straight, but circumstances conspire against him. Some professional thugs con a group of naive delinquents into a burglary that is only meant to be a decoy for the police, so the real and more lucrative crime can be committed without interference. When the delinquents discover they have been taken for a ride, they resolve to get revenge and go after the master criminals. Enough blood is shed to supply the Red Cross for decades as these groups face off. In the meantime, one of the crooks only wants some money to send his young son to the U.S. for a life-saving operation -- and he's willing to do anything to get it. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Considering the passionate times (1944 -- when the Allies are about to liberate France with the consequent round-up of German collaborators), the two leading characters in this love story (Nicole Garcia as Stella, and Thierry Lhermitte as Yvon) could be more passionate in their feelings for each other, and for their country. When Stella is taken away to an internment camp (she is Jewish), Yvon joins the Gestapo so he can get to the camp and free Stella before she is deported to a worse fate. He manages to break her out of the camp, but then both of them have to somehow survive in the face of the Allied invasion and the hunt for German collaborators. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

L'Homme Blesse is known in English-speaking countries as The Wounded Man. Jean-Hughes Anglade is a lonely, isolated young man who lets no one get close to him. He meets a street hustler and comes out of his shell, going 180 degrees into gay Obsession. Though he has yet to physically approach the object of his affection, Anglade builds up so much unrequited lust that it explodes with horrible results. L'Homme Blesse isn't rated, but viewership should definitely be confined to those older than 21--and even some of them may not be ready for it. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Clothilde de Watteville (Lauren Hutton) is compared to "Hecate," a three-headed Greek fertility goddess and a protector of witches who came to be associated with Persphone and Hades. Clothilde/Hecate runs into Julien Rochelle (Bernard Giraudeau), a very young French diplomat in north Africa just before the outbreak of World War II and the two have a casual sexual encounter that leads to another such meeting, and another. His interest in her and his curiosity are heightened when she refuses to reveal any information about herself, and when she disappears for stretches at a time without any explanation. As his sexual passions increase at a par with his frustration at her behavior, he gives up trying to relate at all and walks out of the relationship. A few years later they meet at a diplomatic reception in Berne, the diplomat is older and perhaps wiser, but Clothilde's behavior is an inexplicable as ever. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

The second of director Bernard Tavernier's first three critically acclaimed films, this historical costume drama was the winner of four Cesars. Philippe Noiret stars as Philippe d'Orleans, regent to nine-year-old King Louis XV in 1719, four years after the death of the regent's grandfather, Louis XIV. A hedonist and free thinker who is somewhat limited by his love of sexual excess, his noble stature, and his complete lack of empathy for those on the lower social strata, Philippe serves during a time of rebellious talk and famine, swimming against the tide of social upheaval to maintain the status quo by allying himself with the Abbé Dubois, a foreign minister (the son of a peasant), who claws his way to the post of archbishop because its God-given power and authority isn't contingent on men. Meanwhile, the Marquis de Pontcallec (Jean Pierre Marielle) begins to set forth plans to secede from France and incorporate the Republic of Brittany. The musical score of Que la Fete Commence. . . was composed by the real-life Philippe d'Orleans.

~ Karl Williams, Rovi

Les Camisards brings events to the screen from the period in French history in which King Louis XIV ordered all Protestants to convert to Catholicism. The film begins just after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes (1598-1685), a proclamation that had granted official toleration to Protestants. Rather than being a sweeping epic, this film examines the fight of a small group of Protestants for survival in the mountainous Cevennes region. Some of the story is told using excerpts from the diary kept by an actual participant in the conflict. This movie is notable for its period authenticity and historical accuracy; it does not try to make the story into an analogy for modern issues, and the characters' concerns are correct for their time. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi