Alain David Movies
- 1990
Marie has always been somewhat independent and is considered by some to be a bit of a tomboy. Though she is not quite a teenager, her photographer father has no qualms about leaving her alone for a while when he has to go off on an assignment. One day, while she is walking along, she gets run down by an automobile. The contrite woman driving that car sees to it that she is all right, and before long the two of them have become fast friends. Lilas, the driver, is a prostitute, and she discovers that she has a thing or two to teach the kid about femininity and men. Before long, the precocious youth is trying out her newfound powers of seduction on a family friend. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Caroline Cellier, Jacqueline Maillan, (more)
- 1984
This run-of-the-mill police comedy drama focuses on two policemen, René (Philippe Noiret), a somewhat grubby plainclothes policeman who has lived on bribes and minor racketeering for the last 20 years, and his new partner François (Thierry Lhermitte), especially honest and certainly naive. René is too accustomed to the good life with his lover, a former prostitute, and too much addicted to the racetrack to give it all up because of a straight-arrow partner. And so he fixes François up with the gorgeous Natasha (Grace de Capitani), herself a high-class prostitute whose charms leave the young cop besotted and whose expensive tastes leave him broke. Driven by love above all other concerns, François not only joins René in his schemes, he eventually gets an idea for swiping enough money to retire them both for life. Both Noiret and Lhermitte give top-notch performances that help to compensate for the otherwise predictable script. Ripoux was awarded 1984 Cesars for "Best Film" and "Best Director." ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Philippe Noiret, Thierry Lhermitte, (more)
- 1983
In his third, somewhat flat interpretation of sexual motivations and a relationship based on love, writer and director Patrick Schulmann focuses on the gradually developing romance between a young artist and a good-looking, female radio producer whom he helps nurse back to health, as compared to his sex-possessed roommate, a photographer. Several secondary interests are pursued (a kidnapping, for instance) but none have a bearing on the main story. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Diane Bellego, Fabrice Luchini, (more)
- 1978
Eleven-year old Dora (Nathalie Manet) is forced to chase after clues concerning her inventor-father's death while being chased by thugs working for big industry. Not only is she seeking to understand her father's mysterious death, but some of the clues he gave her indicate that he invented something unusual which the big companies want. She barely escapes being kidnapped and is helped in her search by a magical fairy and an aspiring actress. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nathalie Manet, Valérie Mairesse, (more)
- 1977
During a business trip to Morocco to finalize a deal to build an ugly modern tourist village on the site of a lovely local town, Jean-Luc (Jean-Claude Biraly), the bank representative, is called on by the architect's wife. She has, it seems, accidentally killed her husband during a spat and needs his help to hide the body. Incredibly, he gives it. Then he returns to Paris with the architect's murderous spouse (Marlene Jobert), who proceeds to turn his life upside down with her blithe spirit and joie de vivre. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marlène Jobert, Jean-Claude Brialy, (more)
- 1977
Dear Inspector and Dear Detective were the English-language titles of Philippe De Broca's Tendre Poulet. Annie Girardot plays the old flame of Greek professor Philippe Noiret. The prof tries to rekindle the flames of passion, but Girardot seems curiously preoccupied. It turns out that she's a detective on the trail of a murderer. The film served as the basis for the 1979 American made-for-TV movie Dear Detective, starring Brenda Vaccaro and Arlen Dean Snyder. A DeBroca-directed sequel, Jupiter's Thigh, was filmed in 1979, again with Annie Girardot and Philippe Noiret. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Annie Girardot, Philippe Noiret, (more)
- 1975
A doctor gains a new perspective on her life and career when she faces a life-threatening illness in this drama. Francoise (Annie Girardot) is a French physician with a very busy schedule. While she's well respected by her patients and colleagues, she has precious little time to spend with her husband Gerard (Francois Perier), her pregnant teenage daughter Elisabeth (Isabelle Huppert), or her sullen son Julien (William Coryn). She somehow manages to find time for her lover Daniel (Jean-Pierre Cassel), but Francoise's life is already starting to fray at the edges when she receives the upsetting news that she has cancer. Francoise, however, learns to put on a brave face and faces her disease and its difficult treatment with optimism and a fierce resolve. Annie Giradot's performance in Docteur Francoise Gailland earned her a Cesar (the French Academy Award). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Annie Girardot, Jean-Pierre Cassel, (more)
- 1974
Elizabeth (Romy Schneider) and her daughter (Benedicte Bucher) take a holiday together, and each of them has a brief romance: the mother has an affair with a suitably mysterious Italian (Nino Castelnuovo) and the girl has a satisfying flirtation with a boy her own age (Alain David). ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Romy Schneider, Nino Castelnuovo, (more)
- 1973
This French comedy journeys with Armand (Jean-Claude Brialy), a valet, as he tries to find an appropriate employer for his specialized skills. Alas, the rich are not what they used to be. His first employer's husband is jailed for embezzlement and she can no longer afford him; his second employer obsesses about her days as a leading opera star; his third is a nymphomaniac who is a little too interested in him; and the fourth is a government minister who works much too hard. Perhaps the renowned poet (Pierre Bertin), who wants to remain at home with his cats, will properly appreciate a good valet. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean-Claude Brialy, Micheline Presle, (more)
