Claude Genia
- 1969
In this thrilling mystery of mistaken identity, Jacques (Pierre Vaneck) is a piano player in a nightclub who is approached by a man he never met before. The stranger offers him a job posing as the husband of a mentally challenged woman. He will be rewarded for taking care of the woman. Since his contract has expired at the club, he readily accepts the proposition. The stranger turns out to be the valet of the woman, who other than playing with decapitated dolls, seems quite normal. Jacques and the woman end up falling in love. He looks just like her husband who disappeared during an African safari. It turns out the missing man is a former Nazi hiding out from the international police. Soon agents converge on the house along with the man who had supposedly vanished, leading to an inevitable showdown. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pierre Vaneck, Elsa Martinelli, (more)
- 1969
After serving time in prison for an undisclosed crime, a woman keeps herself alive by resorting to robbery and prostitution. She often waits for her boyfriend, an ex-convict who is forbidden to spend any time in Paris according to his probation agreement. She escapes jail only to break her ankle bone, hiding out from the authorities until the unbearable pain forces her to return to the prison hospital for surgery. She takes temporary solace in a lesbian affair at the prison before once again following her no-good boyfriend into the gutter as the two use each other for sex to avoid their legal and moral responsibilities. The story is taken from the novel by the late Albertine Sarrazin. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marlène Jobert, Horst Buchholz, (more)
- 1968
Remi (Charles Vanel) is a man on the verge of old age who begins to have hallucinations. He believes he has found a dog, but the canine is just a product of his imagination. The man takes a turn for the worse when his only friend, his poet neighbor, moves. He is left alone with his hallucinations and tries in vain to separate fantasy from reality in this plodding, depressing feature. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charles Vanel, Julien Guiomar, (more)
- 1968
Manon (Catherine Deneuve) is an amoral, free spirit who uses sex to surround herself in relatively luxurious surroundings. The mistress of a wealthy man, she meets a handsome young reporter (Sami Frey) on a flight from Hong Kong to Paris. She gives the older man the boot before slipping into a hot bathtub with her new love, the reporter. Her brother Jean-Paul (Jean Claude Brialey) puts out the word to rich men that his hot-to-trot sister is back in town. She willingly allows herself to be used for sex to justify her lifestyle. The reporter loses his job and Manon takes up with another wealthy client, seeing the reporter on the side. Men continue to fall for the beautiful, opportunistic Manon who is more interested in Mr. Right Now than Mr. Right. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Catherine Deneuve, Jean-Claude Brialy, (more)
- 1951
La Verite sur Bebe Donge is another "socko" pure-entertainment vehicle from prolific French filmmaker Henri Decoin. The film stars Decoin's former wife Danielle Darrieux as the title character Bebe Donge, the wife of industrialist Francois Donge (Jean Gabin). Concerned only with surface values, Donge has taken Bebe as a "trophy bride," neither extending nor expecting any real affection. Bebe's frustration with this untenable domestic set-up inevitably leads to tragedy. A trick ending keeps the viewer on the edge of the chair right up to the fadeout. Originally running 124 minutes, La Verite sur Bebe Donge was trimmed considerably before its American release. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danielle Darrieux, Jean Gabin, (more)
- 1945
Filmmaker Maurice Cloche penned the original story upon which La Fille Aux Yeux Gris was based. The title, which translates as Girl with Grey Eyes, refers to the foster daughter (Claudia Genia) of a travelling medical charlatan (Blondeau). Alcoholic country doctor Bernard (Fernand Ledoux) is the girl's actual father, though neither he nor anyone else knows this for several reels. The plot shifts into gear when young Dr. Bernier (Jean Paqui), Bernard's successor, falls in love with the heroine. Running way too long, La Fille aux Yeux Gris would be an exercise in boredom were in not for the multifaceted performance of star Fernand Ledoux. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claude Genia, Line Noro, (more)
- 1945
Director Robert Vernay adapted the screenplay of Le Capitan from a novel by Michael Zevaco. Set during the reign of Louis XIII, this opulent costume drama concerns a devil-may-care nobleman (Jean Paqui) who endeavors to foil a plot against the life of the king. Intended as a two-parter, with each chapter running approximately 100 minutes, the film was premiered in Paris in its full 200-minute form. Audiences were enthralled, complaining not at all about the excessive length (though critics were less politely inclined). For its American release, Le Capitan was trimmed by nearly 90 minutes and extensively redubbed to compensate for the many continuity gaps. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claude Genia, Lise Delamare, (more)
- 1942
Originally released in France in 1943, The Honorable Catherine (L'Honorable Catherine) wasn't distributed in the U.S. until 1948. The ironically nicknamed title character, played by Edwige Feuillere, is a blackmailer who has made a comfortable living through her married lovers. Now ready to retire and settle down, Catherine yearns for genuine romance. She thinks she finds it in the form of a handsome young rake named Jacques (Raymond Rouleau), but this time it is Catherine who is victimized by a clever con artist. A quaintly old-fashioned bedroom farce, The Honorable Catherine was more warmly received in France than in the States. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edwige Feuillère, Claude Genia, (more)
