Gina Manès Movies

Using materials from 1927 and 1936 versions of his classic film Napoleon vu par Abel Gance (hence the presence of several individuals in the cast and credits who had since died), director Gance was able to restore and reconstruct it for modern audiences. This four-hour-long version was made possible through the efforts of Claude Lelouche and the Centre Du Cinema of the French government. It contains scenes which were newly shot for this release, and has an introduction in which Gance explains what his original intentions were for the film, and why the silent version was unavailable for so long. One of the cinematic innovations remaining from those earlier versions is the use of a triply split screen. Gance originally shot at higher film speeds (20 frames per second) than most of his contemporaries. The higher film speed yielded smoother-looking movement (acceptable to modern viewers) and aided in studio dubbing. Among the legendary actors appearing in the film are Koubitzky, Antonin Artaud and Annabella. The story of the film covers the rise of Napoleon during the French Revolution through to the Italian Campaign, which propelled him to power. The full terror of the Revolution is shown, with a menacing performance by Antonin Artaud as Marat. Gance himself appears as the revolutionary apologist, St. Just. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

A social worker endeavors to rehabilitate Parisian streetwalkers in this drama. Two men later meet a pair of these reformed women and fall in love. When one of the women's old friend's is murdered, one of the girl's become a prime suspect. Actually the dead woman was slain by the ex-hooker's former employer, a gangster. Unfortunately the gangster dies in an auto wreck. Meanwhile, the social worker tries to clear the girl by telling police that she had been with her lover. The truth about the girls eventually comes out, and only one of their lovers is understanding. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

This French-German co-production stars Jean Gabin in his standard screen role of a fugitive from justice. Unable to return to his own country, Trott Lennart (Gabin) takes a job with a gun-running operation in Mexico. Even though it is proven that Lennart is innocent of the charges against him, his current illegal activities arouse the attentions of diligent detective Abboy (Pierre Renoir), who harbors a long-standing grudge against the hero. Escaping to the woods, Lennart links up with Lillian White (Michele Morgan), likewise escaping from the Law. Not quite as fatalistic as many French productions of the era, the film permits hero and heroine to escape scot free, though with a few unusual conditions. Written by the prolific Charles Spaak, Recif de Corail was released in the U.S. as Coral Reefs. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Originally released in 1937 as Nostalgie, The Postmaster's Daughter was one of a handful of French films directed by Russian moviemaker Viktor Tourjansky. The great Harry Baur plays Virine, an aging postmaster who operates a way station in Czarist Russia. Virine's daughter Dounia (Janine Crispin) falls in love with Lt. Minsky (Georges Rigaud), who willingly resigns his commission to marry the girl. This does not rest well with Virine, who remains overly possessive of Dounia because she so closely resembles his dear-departed wife. Based on an Alexander Pushkin novel, The Postmaster's Daughter was confiscated by the Nazis in 1942 because of the "undesirability" of Harry Baur, who was married to a Jewish woman and who died under mysterious circumstances in 1943. The film finally gained international release in 1946. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on Idol's End, a novel by Claude Anet, the French Mayerling is based on the tragic real-life story of Hapsburg Crown Prince Rudolph and his mistress, Baroness Marie Vetsera. Since the details of Rudolph and Marie's lives and deaths are clouded in controversy, much of the film is romanticized speculation-with emphasis on the romance. The film establishes Rudolph (Charles Boyer) as a rebellious "man of the people", at eternal odds with his despotic father, Emperor Franz Joseph (Jean Dax). To keep him quiet and out of trouble, Rudolph is forced into an arranged marriage, and surrounded by Hapsburg informers and spies. In an effort to escape this oppressive atmosphere, a disguised Rudolph dashes off to a fair, where he meets the beauteous 17-year-old Marie (Danielle Darieux). Thus begins an illicit romance, which the lovers try vainly to keep secret from the prying eyes of the Emperor's flunkeys. One of Rudolph's enemies arranges for Marie to be taken away to Trieste for a "rest cure." Rudolph sinks into a drunken depression, snapping out of it only when Marie returns. They attempt to legitimize their love through marriage, but the Catholic hierarchy will not approve of Rudolph's divorcing his wife. Desperately, the lovers flee to Rudolph's hunting lodge in Mayerling. Here they spend an exquisite last night together, then formulate a death pact. The following day, Marie and Rudolph are found lying side by side-united in death. Transforming this grim story into a tender, moving romance was quite an undertaking, but the end result was worth it: Mayerling was a huge international hit, and the winner of several industry awards, including the New York film critics' "best foreign picture" prize. Mayerling was remade in surprisingly cold and distant fashion in 1968, with Omar Sharif and Catherine Deneuve. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Throughout his directorial career, E. A. Dupont endeavored to match the success of his 1926 silent classic Variety. Like the earlier film, Salto Mortale has a circus background and is predicated on a romantic triangle, but that's where the resemblance ends. The title refers to a particularly treacherous acrobatic feat, which is performed four times in the picture as a sort of connecting link. The protagonists are three acrobats, two men and a woman. The fact that both men are in love with the woman results in some pretty tense moments under the Big Top, leading to a near-tragedy in the middle of a performance of the "salto mortale." Heading the cast are Anna Sten and Adolf Wohlbrueck (aka Anton Walbrook), both of whom went on to brief Hollywood careers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide