Jean Toulout Movies

French filmmaker Jacques Becker's Edouard et Caroline has been described as a film without a story. This isn't quite true, though the most memorable aspect of the film is the byplay between the two title characters. Edouard (Daniel Gelin) is a young, headstrong musician. Caroline (Anne Vernon) is his flibbertigibbet spouse. The two quarrel over an evening dress, they separate and then reunite. These farcical proceedings are counterpointed by Becker's naturalistic choice of settings, including Eduoard and Caroline's less-than-fashionable apartment and the prison-like confines of Caroline's uncle's mansion. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Entente Cordiale was adapted from Andre Maurois' Edward VII and his Times. Victor Francen heads the cast as Britain's Prince Edward, who after assuming the throne of England in 1910 strives to bring about a lasting peaceful coexistence between the United Kingdom and France. Both countries are treated with equal respect throughout the film, depicted as intelligent nations willing to avoid war at all costs, but not quite as willing to give up national pride; the infamous Fashoda Incident, which almost resulted in full-scale warfare between Britain and France, is the film's central issue. Scores of historical personages make fleeting cameo appearances, including Queen Victoria (played by Gaby Morlay), Lord Kitchener (Jean d'Yd), French president Loubet (Jean Perrier), Clemenceau (Jacques Baumer) and Lord Balfour (Andre Roanne). Not surprisingly, Entente Cordiale was produced and released at a time when France and England were seriously contemplating a united front against future Nazi incursions into Europe. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

As the title indicates, the central "character" in this German drama is a Stradivarius violin. Somehow or other, the instrument continually brings bad luck to its owner, Hungarian military officer Teleky (Pierre Richard Wilm). Hoping to make a living as a musician after WWI, Teleky is forced to give up this dream when he is wounded on the battlefield. Adding insult to injury, his doctor (Jean Galland) falls in love with Teleky's sweetheart! Apparently figuring that our hero needs at least one break, the doctor gallantly steps aside, allow Teleky and his girl to enjoy a happy ending. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Un De La Montagne (Mountain Man) stars Gustave Diesel as the title character, a young mountaineer named Jacques. Offered a huge sum if he successfully completes a dangerous climb, Jacques heads to the Swiss Alps, where all of his predecessors have met with disaster and/or death. According to contemporary reviewers, this is one of the few films to successfully capture the euphoria of mountain climbing; alas, currently available prints are far from pristine, dulling the film's impact. Real-life climbers, guides and skiers, most of them well known to European audiences, play "themselves." This film would make an ideal companion piece for Disney's 1959 actioner Third Man on the Mountain. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Croix du Sud (Southern Cross), per its title, is set in French equatorial Africa. When a white woman and her father fall into the hands of an African tribe, the tribal chieftain demands that she become his bride. Unfortunately, the chief is still in love with a woman of his own race, and his efforts to be faithful to both the women in his life -- and to straddle two diametrically opposite cultures -- result in disaster. Little of the screen time is devoted to the plot; for the most part, the film is a glorified travelogue, and in this capacity it is successful. The best performance is delivered by Mihalasco, cast as a tribal beggar. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Previously filmed in 1921, Charles Mere's play Les Trois Masques (Three Masks) was the basis of France's first all-talking feature. Set on the island of Corsica, the story was distinguished by its "mystery" angle, replete with multiple disguises and deceptions. Renee Heribel heads the cast, which was surprisingly shy of star names. The trade paper Variety's review chose to point out the film's shortcomings by comparing its box-office performance to that of several concurrently-released American talkies. It was also revealed in the review that Les Trois Masques was filmed in England because none of Paris' movie studios had yet been wired for sound. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This mammoth French adaptation of Victor Hugo's novel Les Miserables was originally released at 20 reels, running approximately 4 1/2 hours. It is the familiar story of the hapless Jean Valjean (M. Bagriel Gabrio), who after stealing a loaf of bread to feed his starving family is sentenced to twenty years at hard labor. Even after his release, Valjean is hounded by relentless parole officer Javert (Jean Toulout). Given a new lease on life by a compassionate priest, Valjean adopts an alias and starts life anew, becoming a prosperous provincial businessman -- only to have his livelihood threatened by Javert, who has vowed to pursue Valjean to the ends of the earth for violating his parole. And so it goes, with a colorful and ever-growing cast of supporting characters fleshing out Valjean's tale of woe. Doggedly faithful to the Victor Hugo original (which is more than can be said for most subsequent versions), Les Miserables was distributed in the U.S. by Universal, who released the film in a truncated three-hour version after abandoning plans to divide the picture into two parts, to be run on consecutive evenings. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi