Claude Rich Movies

France, 1815. After his defeat at Waterloo, Napoleon heads for exile. Royalists occupy Paris and attempt to restore the monarchy. However, the battle doesn't seem to be over. On July 6, Talleyrand (Claude Rich), a shrewd politician of flexible convictions, invites chief of police and zealous revolutionary Fouché (Claude Brasseur) to supper and tries to convince him to serve the king. Over the meal they insult each other, accuse each other, and, at first sight, look like mortal enemies. But they definitely have one thing in common: they are both power-hungry. Basically a stage two-hander, the picture looks frustratingly uncinematic and static, despite the vigorous performances by the two leads. It will be enjoyed most by viewers with a good knowledge of the French Revolution and the Restoration who will understand the dialogue's subtle political details. ~ Yuri German, All Movie Guide

Based on the prize-winning novel by Elvire Mural, the French Escalier C (Staircase C) stars Robin Renucci as a cynical, spiteful art critic. The critic learns the error of his ways through the catharsis of disturbing life experiences. Though many of his friends and neighbors try to crack the shell he has built around himself, his eyes are opened to the importance of human compassion only after the suicide of his neighbor. In the original novel, the critic finds fulfillment through homosexuality; this element is removed from the film version, though the gay subtext is still very much in evidence. Escalier C was directed by Jean Tacchella, best known internationally for his earlier Cousin Cousine. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on an autobiographical novel by Marie Cardinal, this well-acted psychological drama details the tormented relationship between Marie (Nicole Garcia) and her mother, stemming from Marie's childhood on their estate in Algeria. The mother, Eliane (Marie-Christine Barrault) had lost a child before Marie was born, and was consumed with hatred for her husband who was carrying tuberculosis and may have been the cause of the child's death. That hatred was never resolved, and Marie grew up in a bitter and strained household. As both women grow older, Marie marries and raises a family while her mother sinks ever deeper into anger, frustration, poverty, and isolated despair. She vents her destructive emotions on her daughter and is completely resistent to her daughter's attempts to help her, to make her life better. At the beginning of the film, Marie has been hemorrhaging and collapses on the Metro - but instead of following the advice of her doctor (and uncle) and going through surgery, she goes into psychoanalysis, where her past slowly comes to light over a three-year period. The sessions with the psychologist and her on-going relationship with her mother unfold as the events in the film. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Le Crabe Tambour (The Crab Drum) stars Jacques Perrin as the title character. An officer in the French navy, Perrin has earned his nickname through his habit of beating his chest a la King Kong after consuming a crab dinner. Stories of this eccentric but courageous warrior remain in circulation long after his involvement in the Indochinese and Algerian wars. Two of his former comrades in arms, Jean Rochefort and Claude Rich, have long suffered guilt pangs for not having stood by "Le Crabe Tambour" when he needed them most. Accompanied by a third veteran, Jacques Dufilho, the men decide to stage a reunion with the dying Perrin. This triangular character study (the title character is seen only in flashback) won several French film industry awards when it was originally released in 1977; still, it didn't pick up a US distributor until 1984. Director Pierre Schoendoerffer co-adapted the screenplay for Le Crabe Tambour from his own novel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In truth, there are two French Detectives in this European crime melodrama. Lino Ventura plays an aging, been-around gumshoe, while Patrick Dewaere is his young, callow and cynical associate. The two detectives don't like each other much at first, but this will change. Their current assignment: getting the goods on a corrupt politician. Occasionally more violent than it needs to be, The French Detective has the twin advantages of authenticity and sincerity. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This film by French director Alain Resnais (Last Year in Marienbad) is loosely based on a true story from the 1930s about financier, con-man and swindler Stavisky who was arrested in 1934 for selling phony stock but was never brought to trial. While in jail, he continued to engage in doubtful monetary transactions. As the rumors that he was being protected by high-ranking members of the government of the French Third Republic were undoubtedly true, the scandal had a profoundly unsettling effect on the French nation, already suffering from poor government handling of the Depression, and this incident nearly brought down both the government and the Republic. Stavisky's death in prison (an apparent suicide) triggered widespread unrest and rioting. In the movie, when Stavisky (Jean-Paul Belmondo) goes to jail as a young con-man, his embarrassed father commits suicide. Ruining countless lives in his stellar career as a big-money swindler, including that of his nobleman friend Raoul (Charles Boyer), Stavisky is shown to be a pawn in a still bigger swindle, one which will destroy the Left and open the way to fascism. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

This French political melodrama deals with the conflict between the political ambitions of Julien (Alain Delon) and his love for his mistress, fashion-model Creezy (Sydne Rome). Based on the novel Creezy, which won the "Prix de Goncourt" in 1969, it tells of Julien's schemes to win a ministerial post. He spends his time meeting with his mentor's widow (Jeanne Moreau), who has now become Julien's political advisor, fantasizing about Creezy, working to placate his radical son, and suffering pangs of conscience about his wife, now confined to a mental institution. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Turn-of-the-century Naples is the setting for this show-business comedy about a theatrical nobody who starts a popular dance craze based on the Can-Can. This film continues lead actress Monica Vitti's successful transition from doing critically acclaimed (but not awfully profitable) dramas to popular comedy. Her acting makes up for her minimal singing and dancing skills, and the film is assisted by a strong supporting cast, first-class production values and upbeat music. This film is also notable for its efforts to accurately show Neapolitan life of the period. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

A wife and her sculptor husband struggle to get by in this situation comedy. Delphine (Michele Mercier) receives word she will inherit a sizeable fortune provided she is a widow. Her love for her husband Antoine (Claude Rich) is soon overtaken by her lust for money. A Jewish charitable organization will get the money if the husband lives. He goes to a local gangster for protection while his wife contacts a mob hitman to murder the man. In the shadows, the couple consorts with gangsters as they jockey for position to collect the coveted coin. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

Bertrand (Louis De Funes) is a victim of blackmail when a man asks for his daughter's hand in marriage in this madcap comedy of errors. The suitor offers money he has embezzled in exchange for permission to wed the young woman. The trouble is that the woman is not really Bertrand's daughter but a woman who had only borrowed her name. Bertrand agrees to let Oscar the chauffeur marry the woman without revealing that she is not really his own daughter. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide