Raoul Billerey Movies
Two of the biggest stars of the French cinema bring their contrasting styles together in this lively romantic comedy. Rose (Juliette Binoche) is an emotional makeup artist who is hoping to get out of a bad relationship with her boyfriend, Sergio (Sergi Lopez), by leaving him in Paris and heading off to Mexico for a holiday. After losing her cell phone, Rose borrows one from Felix (Jean Reno), a somewhat stiff salesman with an interest in gourmet cooking, who is en route toMunich to attend a funeral. When both Rose and Felix find themselves grounded due to changes in flight scheduling and a transportation strike strands them at the airport, they end up sharing a room at a nearby hotel, where their contrasting personalities make the evening rough sledding for them both. As their unexpected stay wears on, will these opposites begin to attract? ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Juliette Binoche, Jean Reno, (more)
- 1997
Recognizing no boundaries to her love, Angele manages to foment riots, rages and tragedy in colonial Algeria. Angele, an Algerian colonist with impeccably French origins, has fallen in love with Said, the assistant in her brother-in-law's bakery shop. Said is conscious of his Arab origins and traditions, and Angele has her work cut out for her if she wants to persuade him to marry her. Once she does, all hell breaks loose, as neither her European-origin peers nor Said's conservative Arab family approve of the union. When word of the proposed marriage gets out, strikes, violence and murder quickly follow, ruining not only Angele's life, but the lives of those around her. Her brother-in-law Paco, meanwhile, has been doggedly trying to get along and raise his family in an increasingly chaotic and difficult situation. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sabrina Ferilli, Clara Bellar, (more)
- 1996
This peaceful French drama was filmed in the beautiful West African desert. Set in the 18th century, when the slave trade was still booming, it chronicles the complex relationships between Jean-Francois, an exiled French aristocrat, his mulatto lover, who is a widow and a slave trader, and the ten-year-old slave whom he raises as a daughter. He receives the girl after making an important deal with a local chief. Jean-Francois is entranced by the intelligent young beauty and raises the girl, Amelie, as if she were his daughter, but as she matures, he finds other feelings stirring within. Even though he continues a long distance relationship with his lover in France, and continues trysting with the widow, Jean-Francois feels closest to little Amelie. When she and other slaves are stolen by a rival tribe, he hastily sets out to save her. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bernard Giraudeau, Richard Bohringer, (more)
A brave and resourceful young woman keeps the spirit of the Three Musketeers alive in this historical adventure. Eloise (Sophie Marceau) is the daughter of the famed swordsman D'Artagnan (Philippe Noiret); while she has a remarkable gift with a blade herself, Eloise is devoting herself to her studies at a convent. However, when a slave escapes from the estate of the evil Duke of Crassac (Claude Rich) and seeks refuge in the convent, the Mother Superior (Pascale Roberts) is murdered in retaliation by the Duke's soldiers. In the midst of the attack, Eloise learns that the Duke and his men have even more dastardly plans in store; the murder of the Mother Superior is part on an ongoing scheme to throw the nation into disarray, making it easier for the Duke to overthrow the King and seize power. Joined by Quentin (Nils Tavernier), a poet, Eloise sets out to call her father and his old compatriots to action to stop the Duke; however, D'Artagan, who now lives a quiet life teaching fencing, isn't so sure he wants to wage a battle against the insurgent forces, no matter how awful they may be. La Fille de d'Artagnan (The Daughter of d'Artagnan) was released in the United States as Revenge of the Musketeers; leading lady Sophie Marceau does her own fencing on screen. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Sophie Marceau, Philippe Noiret, (more)
- 1992
Long before America was mired in an unwinnable conflict in Vietnam, the French had spent decades in an attempt to hold onto their Indochinese colonies, which included Vietnam. By the early 1950s, several generations of dedicated, independence-minded Vietnamese had fought the French to a standstill. This long conflict culminated in a battle along the Laotian border near the town of Dien Bien Phu in March, 1954, which the French narrowly lost. That loss led to a negotiated settlement and the partition of Vietnam. Broken promises and French stubbornness resulted in continued conflict in South Vietnam and the eventual involvement of the Americans. In this film, the wider human face of that 1954 conflict is seen through the eyes of an American reporter, played by Donald Pleasence, as he travels through Vietnam researching the story. In particular, it follows the fate of one group of soldiers, members of the French Foreign Legion, whom the reporter meets at a bar in Hanoi. It is a remarkable testament to political changes in the world that this French movie was filmed in Vietnam with the cooperation of the Vietnamese government. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Donald Pleasence, Patrick Catalifo, (more)
- 1989
The conflict in question is World War II; even though hostilities have all but ceased, the Germans and the French are not precisely reconciled. German soldier Richard Bohlinger, absent without leave, is befriended by a couple of pre-teen boys (Antoine and Julien Hubert, sons of director Jean-Louis Hubert). Despite the fact that they seem to have found a lasting peace, the adult world doesn't see things the boys' way, and Bohlinger is put to death. Apres le Guerre is the second felicitous collaboration between director Hubert and veteran character-actor Richard Bohlinger; the first was the popular Le Grand Chemin. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Antoine Hubert, Julien Hubert, (more)
- 1988
- PG
From time to time a deceased novelist or artist is sufficiently revered that, as a form of homage, his disciples will take one of his unfinished projects and attempt to bring it to completion. The screenplay for La Petite voleuse was written by Claude Miller, Luc Beraud and Anne Miller based on a scenario co-authored by the late French cinema great Francois Truffaut. It brings a respectful, unsentimental, and unflinching eye to bear on the life of Janine Castang (Charlotte Gainsbourg), a 16-year-old girl beset with antisocial drives due in part to an unpleasant home life. After the Second World War, her mother was made an outcast for consorting with the Germans, and she entrusted Janine to the doubtful care of her milquetoast brother and his highly unsympathetic wife. Janine has a vivid fantasy life, and a problem with kleptomania. After she's caught stealing she's forced to go to work as a maid rather than continue in school. Soon afterward, her romantic nature flowers in a number of new relationships which place new obstacles before her. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Charlotte Gainsbourg, Simon de la Brosse, (more)
- 1988
Celine (Sophie Marceau) must choose between Tarquin (Lambert Wilson) and Aurele (Stephane Fries) in this historical drama set during the French Civil War of 1793. The Republican Army decimated Western France when an insurgence of peasants, clergy, and aristocrats loyal to the Royalists staged a counterrevolution. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Philippe Noiret, Sophie Marceau, (more)
- 1987
The residents of a remote Swiss mountain village come to believe an ancient oracle in this drama taken from the novel by Charles Ferdinand Ramuz. With news of the Spanish Civil War on the radio, the people begin to believe the sun will not return and the world will be forever darkened. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Charles Vanel, Philippe Léotard, (more)
- 1987
- R
Directed by French filmmaker Jean-Loup Hubert, Grand Chemin stars the director's young son Antoine Hubert. The lad plays a sickly eight-year-old who is shipped off to visit his country relatives while his mother has her baby. The boy's subsequent adventures run the gamut from delightful to terrifying, with a little "coming of age" (via a few glimpses of nudity) thrown in. Veteran French character actor Richard Bohringer, best known for his star turn in The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover, plays a pivotal role. Grand Chemin was released in the U.S. as Grand Highway. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Anémone, Richard Bohringer, (more)
- 1987
Molinat (Phillippe Noiret) and Leroyer (Guy Marchand) are two cops who hate each others guts but are called on to solve the gunshot deaths of victims found on an Atlantic beach resort. The two focus on some females who have a psychological problem with men who are breathing. Molinat sends Leroyer to investigate some sultry suspects, knowing his hated colleague may never come back alive. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Philippe Noiret, Guy Marchand, (more)
- 1987
Sorceress is not a remake of the 1982 erotic thriller of the same name. This 1987 film is set in medieval France, where, in certain quarters, witchcraft is accepted as a fact of life and an everyday occurrence. A travelling priest visits town after town, hoping to root out those still practicing pagan rituals in defiance of church edicts. Visually, the film is a stunner; in terms of content, there's more atmosphere than story, which is not an altogether bad thing. Try to see the subtitled version of Sorceress; the English-dubbed version is about as credible as a Godzilla movie. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Tchéky Karyo, Christine Boisson, (more)
Jean-Jacques Beineix's Betty Blue stars Béatrice Dalle as the title character, a mentally unbalanced and sexually aggressive free spirit who becomes involved with Zorg (Jean-Hugues Anglade), a repairman moonlighting as a writer. The two engage in a variety of sexual encounters, and grow more passionate toward each other. Betty finds Zorg's book and is aggressively supportive; over time, her mental and emotional instability begin to catch up with her and drive her to the point of romantic obsession with Zorg -- leading to a grisly and shocking conclusion. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jean-Hugues Anglade, Béatrice Dalle, (more)
The dreams and naivete of Charlotte, a young, working-class girl (Charlotte Gainsbourg in an award-winning performance) clash with reality as she meets the young pianist she admires (Clothilde Baudon), and a younger pest she would like to shed (Julie Glenn). Charlotte is surrounded by a drab life in her rundown neighborhood and is saddled with a crass brother and a father whose attention is elsewhere. Life picks up a little color when a new friend comes into the picture, a pianist from the other side of the tracks who is going to give a recital in town. The more sophisticated pianist jokes that maybe Charlotte should be her manager, and that sets off a series of misunderstandings that lead to some pretty wild moments. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Charlotte Gainsbourg, Bernadette Lafont, (more)
- 1977
In this grim drama, a barkeeper who has grown weary of young punks hanging around kills one. Nothing happens to him, and when the boy's younger brother tries to get some revenge, the police intervene and ship the boy off to an insane asylum. There, the nastiness of his situation truly does send him over the edge. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jean-Louis Robert, Charles Nelson, (more)
In this children's drama, a 10-year old boy becomes deeply troubled after his mother abandons him and he must go through a series of foster families. He finally finds one and finds himself befriended by a kindly grandmother with whom he really bonds. Unfortunately, she suddenly dies, and the boy is unable to cope. He begins causing trouble and winds up in a special school. Fortunately, he knows that he can return to the family when he is released. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Michel Tarrazon, Linda Gutemberg, (more)
Jean-Paul Belmondo romps his way through the role of 18th century French bandit chief Cartouche. At first robbing from everyone in sight (he has to -- he's head man of a Parisian crime syndicate) Cartouche is rechanneled into becoming a Gallic Robin Hood by beauteous gypsy Venus (Claudia Cardinale). In Highwayman fashion, Venus eventually sacrifices her own life to save Cartouche from harm. He vows to continue his activities to avenge her death, but still manages to have a riproaring good time doing so. Hilarious without being condescending, Cartouche was reissued under the completely inappropriate title Swords of Blood. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jean-Paul Belmondo, Claudia Cardinale, (more)
- 1960
In what must be the longest lapse of time between a film and its sequel, 70-year-old Abel Gance continues his nearly legendary, 1927 historical drama Napoleon with this tale of Napoleon's life after his victories in Italy. The first half of Austerlitz delves into the private life of Napoleon Bonaparte (Pierre Mondy), the prodigal son of Corsica. The supreme commander of the French armed forces goes about his family life and dallies with Josephine (Martine Carol) and mistress Mlle. de Vaudey (Leslie Caron). He occasionally displays bursts of temper that presage some of the macho violence of the battle scenes in the second half of the film, after Napoleon has proclaimed himself Emperor. This sequel shows that Gance has not lost his directorial touch. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Rossano Brazzi, Pierre Mondy, (more)
