Rosine Derean Movies
- 1932
A novel by the prolific (to say the least) Georges Simenon was the source for Le Chien Jaune (The Yellow Dog). Set in the tiny port city of Concarneau, the story concerns a dishonest doctor who supports himself as a bootlegger. After double-crossing his partners, the doctor plans a quick escape, but is forced to commit murder in the process. Rosine Derean is literally a rose among the thorns in the role of a hotel servant girl. The detective in the case is played by Abel Tarride, the father of director Jean Tarride (nepotism was not merely confined to Hollywood!) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rosine Derean, Rolla Norman, (more)
- 1932
Popular French comedian Tramel plays a dual role in the hectic comedy Barranco. Actually, Tramel is the same person throughout; he just pretends to be two different people. Arrested for vagrancy, our hero is set free when it is learned that he has inherited a valuable silver mine in Mexico. Though he doubts that he's the genuine heir, Tramel plays the role to the hilt, adopting a pretty daughter and investing his millions in a can't-miss stock deal. When the deal does miss, Tramel is rescued by the timely arrival of his level-headed nephew, who ends up marrying the foster daughter. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rosine Derean, Tramel, (more)
- 1932
Befitting its title, which translates as To the Polls, Citizens, this comedy was timed for release during the French political elections of 1932. The plot revolves around the efforts by a wealthy industrialist (Leon Belieres) to win a seat in Parliament. His campaign trail is followed by hotshot journalist Claude Dauphin, who turns out to be a thorn in the industrialist's side. But even though the two men clash over political matters, Dauphin ends up winning the hand of the candidate's comely daughter (Rosinne Derean). American critics compared Aux Urnes, Citoyens favorably to the social satires of director Rene Clair. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leon Belieres, Rosine Derean, (more)
- 1933
Marc Allegret's Lac Aux Dames (Ladies' Lake) boasts an impressive pedigree, having been adapted by novelist Collette from a book by Vicki Baum. A very young and dazzlingly handsome Jean-Pierre Aumont plays an unemployed engineer who lands a job as a lifeguard at a Tyrolean resort. Boasting a most impressive physique, Aumont finds himself besieged by willing females and not complaining about it one tiny bit. Despite the plethora of female pulchritude, Aumont has eyes only for the beauteous Illa Meary, but he ends up neglecting her, with unfortunate consequences. Lac Aux Dames was financed in part by a member of the Rothschild banking family, who made back his investment many times over. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean-Pierre Aumont, Vladimir Sokoloff, (more)
- 1933
Les Cinq Gentlemen Maudits (The Five Accursed Gentlemen), Julien Duvivier's second talkie, was also the second in a series of five box-office hits for the prolific director. The scene is Morocco, where a local soothsayer predicts the death of five men. After three of the "cursed" quintet die under mysterious circumstances, the focus shifts on the fourth, millionaire Harry Baur. It is up to wealthy young Rene Lefevbre, the boyfriend of Baur's niece Rosine Derean, to save his future uncle-in-law from harm -- and to sift out the truth behind the three previous deaths. Like many French films of the era, Les Cinq Gentlemen Maudits is rife with "plugs" for various advertisers, notably a well-known Parisian interior decorating firm. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rene Lefebvre, Rosine Derean, (more)
- 1933
A Certain Mr. Gran is the English-language title of this fast-paced espionage drama. Things literally start with a bang when a car is forced off an Alpine road and the driver is killed in a fiery crash. The assailant grabs a suitcase stuffed with secret papers from the wreckage, and the chase is on. The head villain, international spy Tschernikoff (Albert Basserman), manages to cover his tracks by posing as a harmless antiques dealer. But Tschernikoff ultimately proves to be no match for "a certain Mr. Gran" (Hans Albers), an undercover secret-service agent. Albers' portrayal of Mr. Gran as a wisecracking fashion plate with an eye for the ladies is a fascinating precursor to the James Bond school of spydom. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Germaine Aussey, Olga Tschechowa, (more)
- 1933
This Maurice Tourneur production is based on the old theatrical warhorse The Two Orphans, previously (and more famously) filmed by D. W. Griffith as Orphans of the Storm. Rosaine Derain and Renne Saint-Cyr star as sister Louise and Henriette, cruelly separated early in the proceedings and kept apart by fate, villainy and deprivation until the very last scene. Kidnapped by gypsies, the blind Louise is forced to beg in the streets, while Henriette searches desperately for her missing sister. In the end, however, it is Louise who rescues Henriette from a horrible fate. Filmed in 1933, Les Deux Orphelins came to the U.S. in a crudely subtitled version the following year. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rosine Derean, Yvette Guilbert, (more)
- 1934
L'Or is the French-language version of the simultaneously filmed German melodrama Gold. Brigitte Helm repeats her leading-lady role of Fronce Wills, but the alchemist Maisslot, originally played by Friedrich Kayssler, is herein portrayed by Jacques Dumesnil, while his assistant Berthier, enacted by Hans Albers in Gold, is essayed by Jean Gabin in the French version. Maisslot and Berthier perfect an atomic reactor (20,000,000 volts of power!) for the purpose of manufacturing gold, which is highly coveted by the villains. When the scientists realize that their invention will ruin the world's economy, they set about to destroy it, setting the stage for a near-apocalyptic climax. The original Gold was directed by Charles Hartl, who served as a consultant when Serge De Poligny occupied the director's chair for L'Or. Stock footage from both versions were later utilized in the 1953 Ivan Tors production Magnetic Monster. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brigitte Helm, Rosine Derean, (more)
- 1936
The Story of a Cheat (Le Roman d'un Tricheur) is widely regarded as one of French writer/director Sacha Guitry's best and most personal films. Guitry himself stars as a charismatic cardsharp who survives solely through the auspices of Lady Luck. The story is told almost completely in pantomime; the only voice heard is the narrator's (Guitry, but of course). Among the film's many highlights is the opening sequence, in which the young Guitry misbehaves and is banned from a family picnic--where his parents and siblings all die from eating toadstools. This segues into a side-splitting "black" gag in which an exhausted priest huffs and puffs as he tries to keep pace with the long line of coffins! It has sometimes been suggested that Sacha Guitry was telling his own life story in Story of a Cheat, equating the ins and outs of the film industry with the chicanery of the cardsharp. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sacha Guitry, Pierre Assy, (more)
- 1938
In this French war drama, a battleship captain tries to keep an enemy cruiser from sinking his vessel; he then must defend his honor during a court-martial. Much of the tale is told in flashback and centers not only on the battle itself, but also on the young woman who is having an affair with a younger officer. It is her very indiscretions that ironically save the captain from being drummed out of the service. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Annabella, Victor Francen, (more)
- 1945
L'Assassin n'est pa Comable translates as The Murderer is Not Guilty -- a seemingly paradoxical title, but perfectly true within context of the story. Jules Berry plays a famous film star whose latest production is plagued with bad luck. Eventually a murder is committed on the set, and the most likely suspected is arrested. Berry believes that the "killer" is innocent, and decides to play detective to prove it. Of interest is the fact that the story unfolds in its entirety at a movie studio, thereby saving the producers the cost of building sets. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jacqueline Gauthier, Rosine Derean, (more)
