Sami Frey Movies

A seasoned safecracker is torn between pulling one final, highly lucrative job and abandoning his criminal career in favor of raising his young son. Repeatedly tempted by his grandfather to continue in the felonious family business, 35 year old career criminal Sam instead decides to do everything in his power to finally become a Mensch (a decent man). ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

When an indistinct woman named Charlotte (Isabelle Adjani) leaves a train station in hopes of changing her life forever, she's followed by a mysterious stranger with ill intentions. After recovering a bag hidden adeptly within the women's bathroom, Charlotte re-enters the station, this time looking every inch the femme fatale, from her tailored suit to her dark glasses. When she buys a ticket to another destination, however, the man follows her onboard, determined to prevent her from starting anew. Directed by Laetitia Masson, La Repentie also features Sami Frey, Samy Naceri, Dawn Clement, Maria Schneider, and Jacques Bonnafe. ~ Tracie Cooper, Rovi

The Paris-based photographer-painter-actor-filmmaker William Klein looks back on five decades of his life and multi-careers in this French documentary. Born in 1926, Klein is a native New Yorker who began living in Paris in 1948, studied painting with Fernand Leger, photographed for Vogue from 1955 to 1965, dropped out of the fashion world for 15 years, and directed hundreds of commercials (from soup to hosiery). He was seen onscreen as an actor (People Will Talk, La Jetee) and worked offscreen as a visual consultant (Louis Malle's 1960 Zazie dans le Metro). Klein made both short and feature documentaries (from fighters to fashion), including and Far From Vietnam (1967) and Muhammed Ali, The Greatest. His dramatic film Who Are You, Polly Magoo? (1966) won the 1967 Prix Jean Vigo. Also excerpted here is Mr. Freedom (1968), a fable about America's intervention in Vietnam. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi

This French tale, set in the 17th century, chronicles the marriage between an errant knight and a beautiful spinster. The tale begins in 1629, and the knight is Nathan Le Cerf who joins the regiments of Count Anchire after he loses his entire family to the plague. Nathan's first assignment is to kill the gambling rival of the count in a duel; Nathan obeys, but gets wounded in the process. Still he makes it back to his master and is expecting a generous reward. Instead, the count reviles the knight, invokes Louis XIII's ban on dueling, and orders Nathan beheaded. Nathan will have none of that. Despite his bleeding abdominal wound, he escapes into the countryside. Initially he finds shelter with his lifelong friend, a chalk maker; he then goes on to one of his patrons, an artist. Nathan is relegated to living in a humble hut in the wilds. Eventually he meets an impoverished noblewoman, Marhte de Lairac. She is a rare vision of beauty with her flowing red hair and wide eyes. She and Nathan decide to wed and she begins living with him in the simple cottage. At first the two are quite formal with each other, but soon a real sexual chemistry develops between them. Marthe seems to be terribly excited by Nathan's desire for vengeance against the treacherous count and she eagerly helps him train. The count eventually shows up and Nathan gets revenge. Unfortunately his actions create a disturbing change in his relationship with Marthe. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

This French film offers a powerful fictionalized account of renowned French poet, actor, and intellectual Antonin Artaud who in life walked a fine, often blurred line between genius and insanity. It is told from the viewpoint of Artaud's intimate friend, student, and pusher, the poet Jacques Prevel. The story begins in late Spring 1946 as Artaud is released from a Rodez asylum where he stayed for nine years. He returns to Paris where Prevel, eager to resume their mentor student relationship, patiently waits. The last two years of Artaud's life provide the focus for much of the film. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Lorraine and Gille are sharing a romantic dinner at a cafe in Rome while they celebrate their relationship with a vacation to that historic city. Gille is suddenly still, as he hears a voice out of sight that sounds familiar. Eventually he places it: it is the voice of his former flame Laura, a married woman he had a particularly wild affair with years ago. Rather than turn around and confirm that it is really her, instead he tells Lorraine all about that earlier romance, much to her discomfort. All the action in this film takes place in "real" time at the restaurant in question. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

The formerly great Swiss hotel which Valentin's family owned when he was a boy has been emptied and is about to be torn down. He revisits the magical site's empty halls and ballrooms in order to relive his fond memories of the place. As he remembers, flashbacks reveal episodes in the lives of those who populated these lodgings. One of the boy's favorite experiences was hearing his grandmother tell how an anarchist assassinated an enemy at the hotel; another favorite story was about the time the famous French stage actress Sarah Bernhardt seduced the boy's grandfather. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Serious, logical Martha (Barbara Sukowa) and dreamy, superstitious Anna (Stefania Sandrelli) have been best friends. That is, until Martha's lover Victor (Sami Frey) decides he'd rather be Anna's lover. Mortified, Martha flees to Africa, leaving the field clear for her ex-friend. When Anna comes down with cancer, she pleads with Victor to get her to come back and somehow put this rupture in their friendship behind them. Curiously, Martha does come back, and after some understandable tension and a few bitter words, they manage to reestablish their friendship, though it is now on a different basis. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

The name of painter Jean-Honore Fragonard (1732-1806) is synonymous for a kind of painting style which celebrates carefree romantic life, indoors and out. He was a painter during the final decades of the French monarchy. In this story, he and his brother Cyprien (Robin Renucci), who is an early pioneer in medical anatomy (he dissected corpses and made drawings of what he found in them), have fallen in love with the same woman, Marianne (Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu), a laundress. This attraction has not escaped the notice of Salmon d'Anglas (Sami Frey), a conniving nobleman, who has his heart set on getting revenge on Jean-Honore (Joachim de Almeida) for refusing his patronage and becoming the darling of the French court. This period drama is the first film to be directed by former movie critic Philippe LeGuay. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Andre Delvaux directed this stylish, yet ultimately empty adaptation of a historical novel by Marguerite Yourcenar. Gian Maria Volonte leads the cast as Zenon, a Belgian doctor and alchemist in the 1500s. Zenon travels across Europe for many years hiding from the Inquisition, which eventually catches up with him when he returns to his native Brugge in disguise. The narrative is bolstered by some fine acting by Volonte and a notable supporting cast including Sami Frey, Marie-Christine Barrault, Marie-France Pisier, and Anna Karina, as well as excellent cinematography by Charlie Van Damme and Walter van den Ende. ~ Robert Firsching, Rovi

Black Widow bears no relation to the 1954 film of the same name--beyond its characterization of the female as the deadlier of the species, that is. Debra Winger stars as a federal agent who has sworn to bring Theresa Russell to justice. Ms. Russell has married several millionaires who have all died mysterious deaths, for which she has remained undetected because she has assumed a number of different identities. Ms. Winger is the only person in her department who suspects that all of the deceased millionaires' widows are the same person. Finally tracking down Russell, Winger finds herself inexorably becoming friends with the charming murderess. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Antoine has a promising political career in front of him, if he can only keep from getting sidelined by inappropriate love affairs. He is a junior minister in France's socialist government, and he has had a hand in writing a number of important pieces of legislation. He has put his heart into crafting and promoting a bill to reform higher education. However, he is a little too young and idealistic to accept it when his party sacrifices his bill in order to gain a concession from the opposition on another important goal. Meanwhile, his love affair with a right-wing businessman's wife has been exceedingly difficult to consummate quietly. Antoine and Florence eventually decide they don't care that much about their reputations and throw caution to the winds. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi