Jean Sorel Movies
Internationally known French leading man Jean Sorel made most of his films during the 1960s and '70s. He frequently appeared in French and Italian productions. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi- 2006
Marcello Mastroianni (1924-1996) was arguably the most famous and respected leading man in the history of Italian cinema. A favorite of such directors Federico Fellini, Luchino Visconti and Michelangelo Antonioni, Mastroianni's fame in Europe extended to the United States, where he was nominated for three Academy Awards and frequently starred opposite another celebrated Italian player, Sophia Loren. Filmmakers Mario Canale and Annarosa Morri offer a look at the public and private sides of this legendary actor in the documentary Marcello: A Sweet Life, which features archival interviews with the actor alongside reminiscences from his family, friends and colleagues. Interview subjects include actresses Claudia Cardinale and Anouk Aimee, directors Ettore Scola, Mario Monicelli and Lina Wertmuller, and Marcello's daughters Barbara Mastroianni and Chiara Mastroianni. Marcello: A Sweet Life received its world premiere at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- 1987
In this light comedy and mystery film, Mary is a waitress living in New York. She is also a newlywed, blonde, and none too bright into the bargain. One day, she gets a call from her husband, who instructs her to take the next plane to Florence because he's struck it rich. However, when she lands in Italy, her husband is nowhere to be found. She throws herself on the mercy of a crusty lawyer whom she meets, and he grudgingly allows himself to become her ally and protector while the two of them search for her missing spouse. Using a coded map, they track down the promised treasure, which seems to have come from a bank robbery Mary's husband participated in. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Adriano Celentano, Debra Feuer, (more)
- 1985
In this drama with a nearly invisible storyline, Rosa (Marianne Basler), a very beautiful prostitute, finds that life as a hooker can be a downer. Nude scenes are plentiful, as Rosa goes about her business with the other hookers in the Les Halles district of Paris. Since Rosa is her pimp's main source of income, he is particularly unhappy when she begins to fall in love with a regular Joe with little money of his own. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Marianne Basler, Jean Sorel, (more)
- 1981
Very loosely based on the plot of Henry James' Wing of the Dove, this film resets the story about two lovers trying to steal everything from a dying millionairess, by putting it in the late-20th century instead of late-19th century; it has the lovers be a French prostitute and Italian low-life instead of an Englishwoman and a journalist; and the dying woman is now French instead of American. Once adjusted to those changes, viewers may no longer have any expectations of a homage to Henry James in this French-Italian adaptation. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Huppert, Dominique Sanda, (more)
- 1979
- R
The Bronte sisters are profiled in this biography. The film dramatizes the repressed Victorian lives of the three famed authors who all died young. Their writing, so full of life, was a total contrast to the reality of their existence, focused mostly upon arguing with their father and taking care of their younger brother. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Isabelle Adjani, Marie-France Pisier, (more)
- 1978
The Spanish Mil Millones Para Una Rubia whisks the viewer from Vegas to Monte Carlo, then from Paris to Monaco. The scenery is gorgeous enough to take one's mind off the film's occasional dead spots. The plot concerns a gang of clever thieves who plan major heists in all the fleshpots of the Rich and Famous. Analía Gadé, José Luis López Vázquez and Jean Sorl head the cast, while Hollywood's Stephen Boyd makes a token appearance or two. The film keeps the viewers on their toes throughout its 90 minutes. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1978
In this complex political thriller, a police inspector operating out of Geneva discovers that the death of a Swiss journalist in Italy has more to do with Swiss international banking and high finance than is entirely comfortable. Indeed, as his investigation proceeds, he encounters car bombs and murders galore and challenges the prevailing system, briefly. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jean Sorel, Brigitte Fossey, (more)
- 1977
Nicola (Lou Castel) bears the psychological scars of unbearable guilt. As a boy, he was given the job of looking after his mentally unstable mother and protecting her from herself. One day, he and his sister went instead into a large closet and enacted a childishly intensive "I dare you" bonding ritual, marking one another with the blade of their father's sword cane. While he was occupied in this manner, the boy's mother hung herself and died. Now an adult, he still has an unhealthily strong fixation on his sister. This is so obvious that a girlfriend of his sister's, with whom he has an affair, breaks it off, complaining that she is not interested in being a stand-in for the sister. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Brigitte Fossey, Lou Castel, (more)
- 1973
- PG
This film is based on the 1931 film, Trader Horn. In the earlier picture, explorers (including Trader Horn) who stumbled on a hostile tribe of Africans have their lives saved by a white girl whom the tribe members regard as a goddess. They discover that she is the daughter of some missing missionaries and take her back to Europe with them. In this film, Trader Horn (Rod Taylor) works to thwart the efforts of Germans to use slave laborers in Africa to mine platinum for the war effort (WWI). ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
In this involving political thriller, a secret French paramilitary organization plans to assassinate French President Charles De Gaulle (Adrien Cayla-Legrand) because of their disagreement with his policies during the Algerian War. They hire a professional killer, known only as "The Jackal" (Edward Fox). The police learn of the plot from an informer, and police investigator Lebel (Michel Lonsdale) cleverly pieces together the clues to the Jackal's identity. The complicated plot uses parallel editing to cross-cut between the details of the Jackal's preparations for the assassination and Lebel's efforts to find him before it is too late. Fred Zinnemann presents the story, faithfully adapted from the book by Frederick Forsyth, with precise, dramatic flair. Edward Fox is coldly alluring as the Jackal. Well acted and directed, Day of the Jackal is a tense and engrossing political thriller with a surprising ending. ~ Linda Rasmussen, Rovi
- Starring:
- Edward Fox, Michel Lonsdale, (more)
This cult movie classic, also known as Schizoid, is a psychodrama murder mystery thriller involving LSD, psychoanalysis, lesbianism, and having at least one extremely gory dream sequence which involves eviscerated dogs. The director had to prove in court that the dogs in question were fabricated and not real. Florinda Bolkan stars as the woman with all the clues to murder. Stanley Baker is the unlucky police inspector who has to separate what is fact from fantasy. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- 1971
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A man is found one morning in the bushes of a city plaza in Prague. He is taken to a hospital where the doctors confirm that, although his eyes are wide open, he is dead. There is no heartbeat or sign of life, except, strangely enough, his body temperature is normal. No matter, he's certified as dead and sent into cold storage to wait for an autopsy. "I'm alive," the man thinks, "can't you see I'm alive?" The man, Gregory (Jean Sorel), isn't dead but he's paralyzed and helpless to alert his condition to anyone. As the doctors prepare for the autopsy, Gregory thinks back to yesterday, when he was making plans to help his girlfriend (Barbara Bach) get out of the country. Gregory begins piecing together the mystery of what happened to him in fractured bits of memory -- but will solving the puzzle do him any good? ~ Buzz McClain, Rovi
- 1970
The first color film by writer/director Salvatore Samperi is this grim family melodrama, a modern-day reinvention of the tale of the Prodigal Son. Upon hearing of his father's death, Enrico Merlo (Jean Sorel) leaves his boarding school in Switzerland and returns home to Padua. There he overhears a conversation between his older brother Cesare (Maurizio Degli Espositi), who has taken over the profitable family business, and Verde (Marilù Tolo), Cesare's cousin and lover. Their words persuade Enrico that the two have murdered his father; he obtains proof when he discovers that his father's death certificate post-dates his death. But Enrico becomes gravely ill with pneumonia, all the while refusing to return the incriminating death certificate to the killers, and so Verde makes sure he is denied his needed medication and lets him die. ~ Nicole Gagne, Rovi
- 1970
- R
In this drama, an unhappy young computer student attempts to escape her unhappy homelife by getting involved with a self-centered law student. The 17-year old girl soon gets bored with him and begins affairs with two others. Unfortunately, she is impregnated by the law student who enlists the aid of a wealthy, strange countess to arrange an abortion. The girl then goes to work for the countess and observes all of the problems the woman has with men. After that, the girl resolves to spend her life alone. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1969
This erotic sexploitation feature concerns a couple and their pursuit of sexual fulfillment with each other -- and their mutually agreed upon third bed guests. Lesbian love angles includes the woman's step-daughter. Alberto (Jean Sorel) is soon left alone when the women decides his services are no longer required. After acting on his erotic fantasies, he is left alone and driven to madness when his girlfriend marries another after leaving with her lesbian lover. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Catherine Spaak, Jean Sorel, (more)
- 1969
- R
Romolo Guerrieri directed this well-constructed thriller from a screenplay from genre specialist Ernesto Gastaldi. Returning to Geneva from their honeymoon, newlyweds Deborah (Carroll Baker) and Marcel (Jean Sorel) meet a man named Philip (Luigi Pistilli), who blames Marcel for the suicide of his girlfriend. Spaghetti-western star George Hilton appears as an artist-neighbor with a secret, and Evelyn Stewart (aka Ida Galli) also appears. The plot has many twists and turns, but Guerrieri manages to keep it on track until the intriguing conclusion. ~ Robert Firsching, Rovi
- Starring:
- Carroll Baker, Jean Sorel, (more)
Filmed in English, this Italian mystery thriller/melodrama explores the murder of a doctor's wife. The doctor himself (Jean Morel) has long since taken up with a mistress. His wife begged out of engagements as an asthmatic, all the while actually entertaining herself with her part-time job as a stripper. Did the doctor kill her? After all, he took out a large life-insurance policy on his wife. One highlight of this film is the effective use of its San Francisco setting. Another is its gas-chamber sequence, filmed in San Quentin's actual gas chamber. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
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