Madeleine Barbulee Movies

An unsuspecting novelist is the target of international extortionists in this well-acted suspense story directed by Claude Pinoteau. Lino Ventura stars as Bastien Grimaldy, a man driven to heightened anxiety as the plot against him begins to take effect. Bastien's personal relationships give him enough cause for anxiety -- between his new lover Laura (Elisabeth Bourgine) and a feisty mother (Lina Volonghi), life provides its own insecurities. When he goes to the police with his problems, Bastien is assigned an off-beat inspector to protect him (Roger Planchon) but is still faced with skepticism about his dilemma. In the end, Bastien goes to Berlin, as this conventional storyline moves towards the closing credits. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Right after his release from prison, Victor (Jean-Paul Belmondo) resumes his con-man activities. He rents apartments he doesn't own, sells nonexistent fighter planes to African countries, and by turns pretends to be a gardener, lawyer, private detective, governmental official, and even a transvestite in order to fool his unsuspecting victims. He does it all under the nose of his charming but naive parole officer Marie-Charlotte (Genevieve Bujold). When Victor finds out that Marie-Charlotte's father curates the museum that has an extremely valuable painting, he and his friends decide to steal it. ~ Yuri German, Rovi

Pierre is a middle-aged factory worker with a harridan mother and plenty of unresolved anger about his life. After his father's death, his mother feels compelled to move in with him. Having just moved there with his beautiful girlfriend, he begins to feel the pressure at home and at work. When the May Day revolt begins, he goes crazy, brandishes a sidearm and tells complete strangers to sack businesses and loot stores. Running up to his apartment, he discharges several rounds from his handgun before realizing he needs psychological help. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

In this French comedy, a desperate gambler has one week to repay a large debt; and therefore, enlists the aide of a bungling thief to help him rob a large Paris department store. They choose to pull the heist on Christmas Eve. With the help of another, the gambler poses as Santa Claus. They fill a sack with stolen money, but unfortunately, the bag is taken by another who plans to abscond to Chile. After a bumbling chase, the gambler reclaims his loot. Unfortunately, it has been accidently covered with glue and must be washed and dried. In the end, the gambler is captured. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

The French The Price of Flesh originally entered theatres as Detournement de Mineures. Helene Chanel is the archetypal nice girl who falls into bad company. First she poses for nude pictures, then she allows herself to be talked into a life of prostitution. Chanel is rescued by journalist Michel Roux, who happens to be the fiancee of Chanel's sister Josette Demay. The Price of Flesh was largedly filmed on location in Tangiers. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

French comedian Fernandel stars in this entertaining comedy based on a short story by O. Henry, The Ransom of Red Chief. Antoine (Fernandel) has the brilliant idea of kidnapping the son of a millionaire in order to raise the money he and his partner Paolo (Gino Cervi) need to buy their own auto repair shop. The kidnapping is quite successful but Antoine and Paolo soon discover that little Erick (Papouf) is more than just a handful. Even when Antoine dresses up as a Native American, Erick is not amused for long. The little boy is trouble incarnate, and soon the erstwhile kidnappers are ready to pay for his parents to take him back. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Better known as The Hunchback of Notre Dame, this opulent French production is the second talkie version of Victor Hugo's famous novel. Buried under mounds of latex, Anthony Quinn does his best as the deformed bellringer Quasimodo, though he comes off more as a punchdrunk ex-pug than a literal interpretation of Hugo's tragic protagonist. Somewhat more effective within the film's framework is Gina Lollobrigida as gypsy dancing girl Esmerelda, whose friendship with Quasimodo motivates the story. As in previous adaptations of the Hugo novel, the villain Frolio (Alain Cluny), originally a priest, is given a less-controversial station in life: in this case, he is an alchemist rather than a man of the cloth. Otherwise, Notre Dame de Paris is one of the more faithful renditions of the original novel, even unto retaining Hugo's unhappy ending. When first released in the U.S. by Allied Artists, the film was titled Hunchback of Paris, to avoid a copyright conflict with RKO's 1939 adaptation of Hunchback of Notre Dame. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Max Ophüls' masterpiece stars Danielle Darrieux as the titular Madame Louise de..., who in the film's opening scenes is forced to discreetly sell a pair of earrings, a gift from her military officer husband Andre (Charles Boyer), in order to make good on her debts. After she claims the earrings to be lost, the story of their possible theft hits the newspapers, prompting the jeweler who bought them (Jean Debucourt) to secretly sell them back to Andre, who then gives him to his mistress Lola (Lia Di Leo) as she prepares to leave for a holiday in Constantinople. There, the earrings again change hands as Lola pawns them to cover her gambling losses. They are then purchased by Donati, an Italian diplomat (Vittorio de Sica) on his way to France to meet with Andre. Of course, the earrings soon find their way back to Louise. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi

Noel (Bernard Blier), a grown-up mama's boy, falls heir to a busy matrimonial bureau. Assuming command of the operation, Noel becomes fascinated with the various degrees of loneliness which prompt his clients to seek out his services. As a result, he begins to place his own loneliness and sense of inadequacy in perspective. The supporting characters are drawn in broad strokes, though they never lapse into ridiculous caricatures. Agence Matrimoniale would make a piquant double feature with the Hollywood comedy-drama The Model and the Marriage Broker (1952). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi