Felix Oudart Movies

In their very last feature film, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy travel to London so that Stan can claim his uncle's inheritance. All of the cash has been eaten up by taxes, but at least Stan is able to claim a tax-free island and yacht that his uncle has left him. Boarding the yacht (actually a run-down tub) in Marseilles, Stan and Ollie set sail for their island in the company of stateless refugee Max Elloy, who signs on as a cook, and Italian bricklayer Adriano Rimoldi, a stowaway. The little party is nearly torn to bits by a storm at sea, but the yacht runs safely aground on a newly formed atoll. Its population is increased to five when nightclub singer Suzy Delair, fleeing her domineering naval-officer fiancé Luigi Tosi, takes refuge with the other castaways. Laurel & Hardy and their friends live an idyllic, Robinson Crusoe-like existence until Delair's fiancé shows up. He announces he hasn't come to claim her, but to investigate reports that the atoll is rich with uranium. Indeed it is, and soon every nation in the world is clamoring to claim the island's radioactive deposits. Laurel and Hardy take quick action, declaring sovereignty over "Crusoeland." They then devise an anarchic government over which Ollie presides. Stan is relegated to the position of "The People." Comical chaos reigns when their "no laws, no taxes" policies attract the attention of various unsavory types, including rabble-rouser Michael Dalmatoff. Filmed over a period of 12 months, this expensive Franco-Italian co-production suffers from a too-complex plot, lazy direction, poor voice-over dubbing of the largely European supporting cast, and especially the horrible physical condition of Laurel, who was suffering from several life-threatening illnesses during filming. Fortunately, he regained his health after the production wrapped, as proven by his hale-and-hearty appearance on a 1954 installment of TV's This Is Your Life. Though some disciples of Laurel and Hardy will have a great deal of difficulty sitting through Atoll K, it does contain a few isolated moments of pantomimic brilliance and first-rate sight gags. Originally running 98 minutes, Atoll K was judiciously pruned down to 82 minutes for its English-language release. In Great Britain, the film was titled Robinson Crusoeland, while it was released as Utopia in America. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Critics and filmgoers of the 1950s were so dazzled by the beauty of French leading-lady Martine Carol that it hardly mattered whether or not she could really act. Few demands were made upon Carol's thespic skills in the skittish little farce Une Nuit de Noces. The story takes place during the honeymoon of notorious ladies' man Gaston (Jean Paredes). Before he is able to consummate his marriage, Gaston is confronted by his former mistress Sidonie (Carol), her boyfriend and his bride's mother. There's bedlam in the boudoir all night long, replete with slammed doors, stammered explanations and mistaken identities. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Scandals of Clochemerie proved that Hollywood filmmakers had no monopoly so far as poking fun at the movie industry is concerned. This French effort is a glorious lampoon of the "typical" Gallic film, complete with broadly caricatured characters and deliberately exaggerated cliches. Adapted by Gabriel Chevalier from his own novel, the film revolves around the construction of a comfort station in the village of Clochemerie. This momentous undertaking has serious ramifications on the community, not least of which is the exposure of several family skeletons. The film ran into censorship trouble in the States, not just because of its erotic content and occasional religious satire, but also because, at base, the film is about an open-air toilet facility. Originally released in France in 1947 as Clochemerie, the film proved an enormous success during its initial run; as such, it was the last truly profitable venture from veteran filmmaker Pierre Chenal, once the darling of the Parisian critics. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Generally forgotten today, Macadam opened to good reviews and excellent business when it first came out in 1946. The film takes place in the "demimonde" of Paris' Montmartre district. The incomparable Francoise Rosay heads the cast in this atmospheric, melodramatic yarn about French gangsters, their mistresses, and various and assorted "ladies of the evening." Much of the critical attention was centered around Simone Signoret, in her first major screen role. In America, Macadam was released (in a heavily expurgated version!) as Back Streets of Paris. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Filmed during the war, this little-known Fernandel vehicle finally attained an American release in 1951. The star plays Lavarede, an obnoxious braggart and spendthrift who falls heir to his uncle's fortune. But there's a condition to the will: in order to claim his uncle's millions, Lavarede must first spend three months travelling around the world with but five sous to his name. Reportedly, the film ran into censorship problems with the provisional German government. Whatever the case, existing prints of Les Cinq Sous de Lavarde are obviously incomplete, with co-star Josette Day's role sliced into near-nonexistence. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide