Renee Devillers Movies

La Bie en Herbe (The Flowering Herb) was the second of Autant-Lara's two directorial efforts for 1953. Philippe (Pierre-Michele Beck) is 16; Vinea (Nicole Berger) is 15. Friends since infancy, Philippe and Vinea have always regarded themselves as brother and sister. But as adolescence segues into puberty, the two youngsters fall in love. Though their parents are oblivious to their growing ardor, an older woman (Edwidge Feuillere) sums up the situation. She takes Philippe under her wing and initiates him sexually, so that Vinea's virtue will remain intact -- at least for the time being. When released in America in 1954, La Bie en Herbe was rechristened The Game of Love. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Monsieur Fernandel plays the sheep-shearer, who makes a decision to say goodbye to the little lambs and to concentrate on the beautiful mademoiselles. Sacre bleu! It is tres funny (almost like the Jerry Lewis film, yes?) when Fernandel becomes the hairdresser, and begins clipping the ladies much in the manner of the sheep. And Fernandel's wife, she is not so happy over the many ladies that Fernandel is shearing. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Originally titled Un Grande Campon, The Perfectionist is a tailor-made vehicle for Pierre Fresnay. The star plays a brilliant and celebrated surgeon, on the verge of achieving his life's goal: a membership in the Academy of Medicine. Unfortunately, the surgeon's medical accomplishments are counterpointed by his less-than-admirable private life. One of the victims of the surgeon's single-minded pursuit of success is his woefully neglected life. He finally awakens to his domestic responsibilities only to lapse back into his old habits at the first opportunity. A subplot concerns a young medical student who bids fair to achieve the same measure of success as the elder surgeon -- and to make the same grievous errors on a personal level. The Perfectionist was the 1951 winner of France's Les Victoire Cinema Francais, the Gallic equivalent to Hollywood's Oscar. The film was the third feature-length directorial effort of Yves Ciampi, himself a onetime medical student. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Le Voile Bleu is a tear-stained "perservering through the years" drama starring Gaby Morlay. During WW1, Red Cross nurse Louise (Morlay) loses her soldier-husband in battle. Shortly thereafter, her newborn baby dies. Once she's come to terms with her grief, Louise vows to devote her life to caring for other people's children, which she does for the next four decades at great personal sacrifice. The fruits of her selfless efforts are revealed at the climax, when several of Louise's grown-up charges gather to honor their surrogate mother in a glorious "family" reunion. The Blue Veil was remade in Hollywood in 1952, with Jane Wyman in the lead. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Filmed in 1936 but not released in the US until 1940, Julien Duvivier's Man of the Hour (L'Homme du Jour) was, believe it or not, Maurice Chevalier's first French starring feature (all of his previous vehicles had been made in Hollywood or London). Chevalier plays a dual role: "Himself", the well known singer-boulevardier, and a humble stage electrician named Alfred Boulard. The hero of the occasion is Boulard, who attains fame and fortune after donating blood to save the life of stage actress Mona Talia (Elvira Popesco). His sudden celebrity goes directly to Boulard's head, and soon he is impossible to be around. In the end, Mona teams up with Boulard's boarding-house companions to teach him a lesson. Critics in 1936 were overwhelmed with the scene in which both Chevaliers sing together, though that sort of thing was already kid stuff in Hollywood. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Sweetness of Loving is the English-language title of this French musical comedy (based on a novel by A. Dieudonne). Victor Boucher delivers an on-target performance as Albert Dumontier, a ceramics engineer who dabbles in songwriting. Dumontier's cousin Rene (Henri Bose) takes it upon himself to publish several of Albert's songs under a fictional name. By the time Albert finds out about this, he's become enmeshed in the intrigues hatched by Rene's wife Germaine (Rene Devillers), who is attempting to prove that her husband is unfaithful. Adding curry to the stew is the fact that Germaine and Albert had once been sweethearts -- and they still haven't got over one another. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide