Bertrand Javal Movies
- 1975
Love turns out to be all in the family in this romantic comedy from France. When an elderly couple decides to marry, their families come together for a wedding banquet that turns into a raucous, wine-soaked celebration. Marthe (Marie-Christine Barrault) and Ludovic (Victor Lanoux) are distant cousins related by marriage who meet for the first time at the reception; they take an immediate liking to each other and resolve that they should see each other more often. Before long, they've become close friends, but their spouses begin to think there's more going on than just good conversation. However, the more people are convinced the two have become lovers, the more the idea of taking their friendship to the next level appeals to them. Marie-France Pisier has a memorably funny "suicide" scene as Ludovic's wife. Cousin Cousine was a surprise commercial success in the United States, where it received several Academy Award nominations and spawned an Americanized remake, Cousins (1989). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marie-Christine Barrault, Victor Lanoux, (more)
- 1970
- PG
This Costa-Gavras thriller stars Yves Montand as an East European government functionary, inexplicably imprisoned by his Communist superiors. He is not told why he has been arrested, nor has his wife (Simone Signoret) been informed of his fate. Undergoing psychological torture, Montand is grilled about his wartime activities. At the end of his rope, Montand agrees to sign several papers that are thrust before him. He eventually discovers that he's to be a defendant in a "show trial" conducted by his government. He never knows the whys and wherefores of the whole affair -- nor does the audience. The Confession was based on the true story of loyal Communist Arthur London's unjustified purge trial of 1951. Despite the film's confusion, Costa-Gavras' Kafkaesque view of the world, in which the individual is overwhelmed by events that he can't possibly begin to understand, struck a responsive chord in the chaotic early '70s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yves Montand, Simone Signoret, (more)
- 1965
It is only with some reluctance that big-time hood Alphonse (Lino Ventura) allows himself to be persuaded that a major painting-theft planned by some formerly small-time gangsters is a good idea. He gives the idea his backing and support and winds up holding the bag for the crime as the others escape. On emerging from prison, he wreaks havoc on his betrayers, until a pretty girl stops him in his tracks. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lino Ventura, Charles Aznavour, (more)
- 1961
Teetering on the one-dimensional, this romantic drama about the coming of age of a nineteen-year-old American woman in Paris is fairly straightforward. Ann (Jean Seberg) arrives in the city of light to visit her uncle, a doctor. But she soon finds herself taking care of a professional woman who is recovering from a suicide attempt and a broken heart. Ann slowly builds up a hatred for the man who drove her charge into such a desperate state but then begins to waver after contact with him. Aside from this association, she meets a different crowd than the one she knew back home in Nebraska, and changes in her attitude, dress, and hairstyle are the result. These alterations only lead her into trouble, as she starts an affair with the very man she had hated earlier. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Micheline Presle, Maurice Ronet, (more)
