Danielle Darrieux Movies
French actress Danielle Darrieux studied the cello at the Paris Conservatory, but the direction her life took was more towards acting than music. Danielle made an impressive film debut as a headstrong teenager in La Bal (1931), but didn't crack the consciousness of international filmmakers until her heartrending portrayal of the doomed Baroness Marie Vetsera in Mayerling (1937). The success of this film led to Danielle's American contract with Universal pictures; studio executive Joe Pasternak cannily concocted what film critic Leonard Maltin has labelled a "winsome" image for the actress in her first US film, The Rage of Paris (1938). Electing to return to France after her American debut, Danielle found herself working under the scrutiny of the new Nazi regime. She made the best of things, continuing to star in films and entertaining the occupation troops as a singer. Unfortunately, this latter activity caused Ms. Darrieux to be labelled a collaborator by the French underground, which at one point targetted the actress for execution. After the war, there were some awkward moments for Danielle, but the death sentence was allowed to lapse. She returned briefly to the US in the early '50s, appearing as a French chanteuse in Rich, Young and Pretty (1950) and as James Mason's duplicitous lady friend in Five Fingers (1952). Most fans feel that Danielle did her best work in the latter part of her career, notably in director Max Ophuls' Madame De... (1953) and Jacques Demy's Young Girls of Rochefort (1967). The actress sang in concerts and cabarets in the '60s, and in 1970 replaced Katharine Hepburn the Broadway musical Coco. In the '80s, Danielle Darrieux scored a significant success in a Paris staging of the film musical Gigi, playing the role originated in the 1985 film by Hermione Gingold. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1955
It took over thirty years for D. H. Lawrence's "forbidden" novel Lady Chatterly's Lover to make it to the big screen, courtesy of director Marc Allegret. Updated to the 1950s, the film stars Danielle Darrieux as Lady Constance Chatterly, comfortably married to wealthy invalid Lord Clifford Chatterly (Leo Genn). Despite her husband's incapacitation, Lady Constance doesn't feel that anything is lacking in her life--until she meets handsome, earthy caretaker Mellors (Erno Crisa). Her sexual awakening is the nucleus of the story, though the film strives hard to avoid overt eroticism, a surprising creative decision for a French film of the mid-1950s. Even so, the dialogue in Lady Chatterly's Lover was ripe enough to be heavily bowdlerized when the film was translated into English. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, Erno Crisa, (more)
Showing no signs of slowing down in his 70th year, Sacha Guitry served as director and writer of the lavish historical epic Napoleon, and also costarred as Talleyrand. It is now hard to assess the quality of the film, since most American prints are severely edited, and the color photography appallingly washed out. Reviewers in 1955 admired the effort that went into this $1,800,000 production, but complained that the viewer left the film with no deeper understanding of Napoleon Bonaparte than the viewer had had when coming in. Daniel Gelin poses impressively as the young Bonaparte, registering emotion only when things go wrong in his conquest of Europe, while Raymond Pellegrin is somewhat better as the older, more jaded Napoleon (the transition between the two actors is handled in a near-comic fashion). The Revolution is reduced to a few fleeting scenes, while the rest of the film is devoted to political infighting and betrayal. The huge supporting cast includes Michele Morgan as Josephine and Lana Marconi and Dany Robin, respectively, as Napoleon's mistresses Waleska and Desiree. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Raymond Pellegrin, Daniel Gélin, (more)
- 1955
L'Affair des Poisons is an unusual murder yarn, set during the reign of France's King Louis XIV. Danielle Darrieux stars as Mme. De Montespan, who is, to use the common 17th century euphemism, a "favorite" of the French monarch. When she is cast aside by His Majesty, Mme. De Montespan schemes to discredit her rival for Louis' affections. Conspiring with defrocked priest Guibourg (Paul Meurisse) and fortune teller La Voisin (Vivienne Romance), the "heroine" begins to poison a number of aristocrats close to the king, then plants evidence suggesting that her rival is responsible. The film accommodates any number of lurid (but historically accurate) sequences, including a harrowing torture-chamber episode. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, Viviane Romance, (more)
- 1954
Michel Auclair is the leading character (he certainly isn't the hero!) in the French Bonnes a Tuer (Ripe for Killing). A two-bit hustler from a poor family, Auclair manages to break into society by seducing and abandoning a series of female domestics. Once he's made it to the big time, he lines his pockets by promising to keep spicy tidbits out of the scandal magazines. After several romantic liaisons, Auclair perversely invites his former wife, his present one, his future one and his mistress to a party, intending to murder one of the ladies and then get away with it. He doesn't. Almost Wellesian in its use of multiple flashbacks, Bonnes a Tuer is far more slick and elaborate than its seamy subject matter deserves. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michel Auclair, Danielle Darrieux, (more)
- 1954
Stendhal's brilliant but difficult novel Le Rouge et le Noir all but defies transfer to film, but adaptor/director Claude Autant-Lara comes within shouting distance of full success. Stripped to essentials, the plot concerns Julien Sorel (Gerard Philipe), a carpenter's son who becomes a tutor. While his duties do not include the seduction of his employer's wife (Danielle Darrieux), Sorel offers this service free of charge. After this episode, Sorel becomes a priest...and the story isn't over yet. Though the director is too doggedly literal in his adaptation at times, and despite the fact that Gerard Philipe was about ten years too old for the part of Jean Sorel, Le Rouge et le Noir manages to hold the audience in its thrall for 2 hours and 50 minutes (most American prints, retitled The Red and the Black, run only 140 minutes). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gérard Philipe, Danielle Darrieux, (more)
- 1954
Chateaux en Espagne (Castles in Spain) was written and directed by former cinematographer Rene Wheeler. When her boss dies suddenly, secretary Genevieve (Danielle Darrieaux) is stranded in Spain. Genevieve seeks shelter in the home of her boss' brother, famed bullfighter Mario (played by real-life matador Pepin Martin Valezquez). Love blooms, much to the discomfort of the leeches and sycophants in Mario's entourage. A potentially tragic finale is sparked by the jealous goadings of Mario's sexy former lady friend Maria (Sylvia Morgan), who insists that he return to the bullring despite Genevieve's protestations. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux
- 1954
Escalier de Service (Service Entrance) charts the misadventures of gorgeous maidservant Marie-Lou (Etchika Choreau). After fainting in public, Marie-Lou is allowed to convalesce in the apartment of a handsome photographer. Feeling a bit frisky one morning, our heroine begins to recall isolated incidents in her past, which are then enacted by an all-star supporting cast. Mischa Auer, Robert Lamoreaux, Danielle Darieaux and Jacques Morel are among those who have had the benefit (in more ways than one) of Marie-Lou's services. Escalier de Service was directed by Carlo Rim, best known for his work on the Fernandel comedies. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, Robert Lamoureux, (more)
- 1953
Le Bon Dieu Sans Confession is one of the lesser-known works of prolific French filmmaker Autant-Lara. Stuck in a loveless marriage, bourgeois industrialist Francois (Henri Vilbert) falls in love with Janine (Danielle Darrieux), another man's wife. Francois sets up Janine as his mistress, and she, mercenary soul that she is, likes the set-up so much that she continues the relationship even when her own husband returns from WW II. In the long run, however, Janine is the loser in the situation. Based on a novel by Paul Vialar, Le Bon Dieu Sans Confession is one of a handful of films in which nobody is sympathetic enough to elicit audience identification. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, Henri Vilbert, (more)
Max Ophüls' masterpiece stars Danielle Darrieux as the titular Madame Louise de..., who in the film's opening scenes is forced to discreetly sell a pair of earrings, a gift from her military officer husband Andre (Charles Boyer), in order to make good on her debts. After she claims the earrings to be lost, the story of their possible theft hits the newspapers, prompting the jeweler who bought them (Jean Debucourt) to secretly sell them back to Andre, who then gives him to his mistress Lola (Lia Di Leo) as she prepares to leave for a holiday in Constantinople. There, the earrings again change hands as Lola pawns them to cover her gambling losses. They are then purchased by Donati, an Italian diplomat (Vittorio de Sica) on his way to France to meet with Andre. Of course, the earrings soon find their way back to Louise. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charles Boyer, Danielle Darrieux, (more)
- 1952
Newly married Daniel Gelin spends most of Adorable Creatures reflecting longingly on his previous amours. One of his past conquests was unhappy housewife Danielle Darrieux. Another was insatiable widow Edwige Feuillere. And yet another was avaricious Martine Carol (then married to director Christian-Jacque). Originally released in France in 1952, Adorable Creatures didn't get theatrical play in the US in 1956, and then only in a heavily bowdlerized addition. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, Daniel Gélin, (more)
- 1952
Based on a true story, 5 Fingers stars James Mason as a man known to his superiors only as Cicero. Ostensibly the valet of the British ambassador to Ankara during World War II, Cicero is actually a Nazi agent. He holds no particular political viewpoint: the Nazis offered the best price, so for the time being he is loyal to them. Falling in love with the beautiful Danielle Darrieux, Cicero uses her home as a contact point to meet his German associates. At great personal risk, Cicero secures secret British war files and smuggles them to the Germans; they find the information in the files too far-fetched to be taken seriously--and thus are caught unawares on the morning of the D-Day invasion. An ironic coda finds Cicero, setting himself up in luxury in Rio de Janeiro, double-crossed by both Darrieux and the Germans. What else can he do but laugh uproariously? 5 Fingers, based on the memoirs of the real-life "Cicero" L. C. Moyzisch, was adapted into a 1959 TV series, wherein the antihero was converted into a 100% good guy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Mason, Danielle Darrieux, (more)
- 1952
The works of Guy de Maupassant have likely been adapted by more French filmmakers than those of any other author (with the possible exception of Georges Simenon). Max Ophuls harnesses three Maupassant short stories to suit his artistic purposes in Le Plaisir (House of Pleasure). In "The Mask," an aging lothario (Jean Galland) learns more about himself than he cares to when he dons a mask to cover his wrinkles. In "The House of Madame Tellier," the proprietress of a brothel (Madeline Renaud) closes up shop one day for an unusual (for her) personal mission. And in "The Model," both the title character (Simone Simon) and her artist-lover (Daniel Gelin) pay the price for her romantic impulsiveness. Each of the playlets in Le Plaisir explore conflicting sides of human nature -- a theme common to both the works of Maupassant and the films of Ophuls. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claude Dauphin, Jean Galland, (more)
- 1951
La Verite sur Bebe Donge is another "socko" pure-entertainment vehicle from prolific French filmmaker Henri Decoin. The film stars Decoin's former wife Danielle Darrieux as the title character Bebe Donge, the wife of industrialist Francois Donge (Jean Gabin). Concerned only with surface values, Donge has taken Bebe as a "trophy bride," neither extending nor expecting any real affection. Bebe's frustration with this untenable domestic set-up inevitably leads to tragedy. A trick ending keeps the viewer on the edge of the chair right up to the fadeout. Originally running 124 minutes, La Verite sur Bebe Donge was trimmed considerably before its American release. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, Jean Gabin, (more)
- 1951
Set in fin de siecle Paris, La Maison Bonnadieu stars Bernard Blier as a middle-aged bourgeois husband named Felix. Much to his discomfort, Felix learns that his wife Gabrielle (Danielle Darrieux) is carrying on with a young man--a very young man. Rather than express outrage, Felix decides that there's something lacking in him. He spends the rest of the picture trying to keep his wife by altering his own personality and outlook. La Maison Bonnadieu managed to secure good American bookings on the strength of Danielle Darrieux's star appeal. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, Bernard Blier, (more)
- 1951
Rich, Young and Pretty succinctly describes Jane Powell, the heroine of this frothy MGM musical. Vacationing in Paris with her father, Jim Stauton Rogers (Wendell Corey) -- a cattle baron-turned-politician, Elizabeth Rogers (Powell) falls in love with handsome Andre Milan (Vic Damone, in his film debut). She also learns to her surprise that her Gallic mother, Marie (Danielle Darrieux), is not dead as she's been led to believe, but very much alive and very much involved with suave South American Paul Sarnac (Fernando Lamas). The plot is merely there to provide breathing space for the film's ten -- count 'em, ten -- musical numbers. If Rich, Young and Pretty resembles a Deanna Durbin picture at times, it may because it was produced by Durbin's discoverer, Joseph Pasternak. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jane Powell, Danielle Darrieux, (more)
- 1950
An exercise in style, La Ronde was one of the few films of the 1950s to contain overtly sexual themes. The story is a series of character vignettes, set in Vienna in the early 1900s and held together by a narrator (Anton Walbrook). As the title implies, both the story and the film's visual motifs are circular. Director Max Ophuls uses an old-fashioned merry-go-round to foreshadow the film's events, in which each segment introduces a new character, who has an affair with a character from the previous scene. The film demands that the audience pay attention to the structure, to the interplay among the characters, and to the opulent visual elements; and the effect is synergistic delight, in which the viewer is engaged both visually and intellectually. Because it was filmed in black-and-white, La Ronde does not have the garish look of some of Ophuls' other films, notably Lola Montès. La Ronde is among the few foreign language films to receive multiple Oscar nominations, for Black & White Art Direction and Best Adapted Screenplay. ~ Richard Gilliam, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anton Walbrook, Simone Signoret, (more)
- 1949
This French comedy was released variously in the U.S. as Look After Amelie and Oh, Amelia. The eponymous heroine, played by Danielle Darrieux, is the potential bride of playboy Marcel (Jean Dessally). He wants to marry her to land an inheritance. Marcel's plans are blown to bits when Amelie falls in love with a dashing prince (Aslan). These and all other plot convolutions are based on a 19th-century stage farce: indeed, Amelie, Marcel et. al. are presented as actors appearing in a production of that play. As the plot rolls merrily along, director Autant-Lara contrives to have members of the audiences climb on stage and participate in the action, resulting in a finale that wasn't in the script. Coming right after Autant-Lara's grim romantic melodrama Le Diable au Corps, Occupe-Toi D'Amelie was apparently the director's own method of letting his hair down. The film represented the return to the screen of Danielle Darrieux, who'd only recently exonerated herself from a charge of collaborating with the Nazis during the Occupation. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, Jean Desailly, (more)
- 1948
Based on the novel by Victor Hugo, Ruy Blas was adapted for the screen by no less than Jean Cocteau. The title character, played by Jean Marais, is a dashing nobleman-turned-bandit operating in 17th century Spain ("played" by France and Italy). Marais is also seen as a bookish student who happens to bear a striking resemblance to Ruy Blas. Top-billed as the Queen of Spain is Danielle Darrieux, making her film comeback after weathering accusations of collaboration during WW2. A long and frequently verbose film, Ruy Blas delivers the goods and more during the action highlights and love scenes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, Gabrielle Dorziat, (more)
- 1947
Danielle Darrieux stars as Arabella Delvaire in this baroque adaptation of Pierre Benoit's novel Bethshabee. Arabella is a woman of the world who arrives at a remote Foreign Legion outpost for a rendezvous with her current lover, Captain Duveuil. It so happens that one of Arabella's previous amours, Captain Somerville (Paul Meurisse), is also serving at the same post. So much for joining the Foreign Legion to forget. A climactic knife duel "solves" the film's various plot complications. Despite its Foreign Legion background, Bethsabee has next to no action, which must have made things difficult when the film was distributed to the U.S. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, Georges Marchal, (more)
- 1945
French film favorite Danielle Darrieux had only recently cleared herself of a wartime "collaboration" charge when she starred in Au Petit Bonheur. The title translates as Happy Go Lucky, perfectly capturing the tenor of the film. Things aren't so happy at the outset, however, not with wealthy Andre Luguet on the verge of suicide. Luguet gets a second lease on life when he finds himself the nonplused host of Darrieux, who wants to make her errant husband Francois Perier jealous. Au Petit Bonheur is rather obviously derived from a stage play, written by Marc Gilbert Sauvajon. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, François Perier, (more)
- 1945
Danielle Darieux stars in the French romantic drama Adieu Cherie (Goodbye Darling). Darieux plays a Parisian woman of affairs who falls in love with wealthy young Jacques Berthier. In the tradition of Camille and Waterloo Bridge, the heroine tries her best to be accepted by Berthier's respectable parents, despite her dubious reputation and uncertain future. The problem lies in the acting of Berthier, who isn't up to his co-star's histrionic abilities. In addition, the usually reliable Raymond Bernard directs as if his mind were on something else. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, Gabrielle Dorziat, (more)
