Henri Serre Movies
- 1989
Jeanne (Slveig Dommartin) is a woman who is driven by her very active conscience. She attempts to assuage her idealistic bent by trying out life as a nun, but this doesn't work out. After she leaves the convent, she takes a job at a factory, where the callousness of management spurs her to become a labor activist. Her efforts are marked by great persistence and fervor, but she lacks any kind of diplomacy or persuasiveness, and as the years progress, she manages to alienate everyone in her life. By the end of the film, there is only one way that she can see to resolve the horrible situation she finds herself in. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Solveig Dommartin, Philippe Clevenot, (more)
- 1989
- R
Directed by Philip Sebton, Mister Frost chronicles the life of serial killer Mr. Frost (Jeff Goldblum), who, after stashing 125 tortured corpses in and around his property, is caught by a British detective (Alan Bates) and brought to a mental institution. Strange things begin to happen immediately after his arrival--the egotistical Dr. Reynhardt (Roland Giraud) suddenly loses confidence, an angelic young boy goes insane, and people see images of Satanic eyes in their rear-view mirrors. Meanwhile, the only person Frost (Goldblum) will speak to is psychiatrist Dr. Sarah Day (Kathy Baker), who questions why the police could not find any official records of his existence. He tells her that he is, in fact, none other than Satan himself. According to an angry Frost, the world has tossed aside the notion of pure evil, opting instead to use psychological explanations to aid them in understanding why terrible things happen to good people. Frost's mission on earth is to remind man that the devil does exist, and is still bargaining for immortal souls. He believes if he can convince a psychiatrist (Baker), to murder him because she believes he is the devil, it will not only help his cause, but act as a resounding personal victory. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeff Goldblum, Alan Bates, (more)
- 1985
In a specialized, hermetic drama about love won and lost, not necessarily by the same individuals, novice director Christine Laurent has focused on the backstage melodramas of an opera company. The conductor for an upcoming performance of the Marriage of Figaro has his mind and heart on other matters -- an entrancing diva who keeps him enraptured with her presence and voice. In the meantime, he finds fault with his cast members who cannot, of course, measure up to the woman of his dreams. As singers encounter one problem or another, it is clear that something has to be done about the conductor. Director Laurent designed costumes for both theater and opera, giving her some insight into the venue. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Magali Noël, Krystyna Janda, (more)
- 1985
With this 410-minute epic, Prolific Portuguese director Manoel de Oliveira adapts the 7-hour stage play of Catholic playwright Paul Claudel. Two people -- Dona Prouheze (Anne Consigny) and Don Rodigue (Luis Miguel Cintra) have fallen in love but are honor-bound to renounce their passion for a greater love of God. Dona Prouheze is particularly devout and has offered her satin slipper to the Virgin Mary in exchange for the Virgin's protection against sin. She dies as virginal as when she was born, while Don Rodrigue conquers Asian lands for king and country. As his life progresses, he becomes more and more devoted to painting religious subjects on his ship, rebuffing the royal attempts to get him back into active duty. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Luis Miguel Cintra, Patricia Barzyk, (more)
- 1983
A physical attraction between Simone Cambrai (Bibi Andersson) an agent for a French press, and Steiner Carlsen (Bjoern Skagestad) a cover designer for a Norwegian firm turns into a sexual relationship when the two meet at a book fair in Frankfurt. Although they carry on an affair through letters and tapes until they can meet again, they do not seem able to get past their glamorous exteriors to something at a deeper level. When issues arise that call for communication on a more profound basis, the relationship starts to falter. This movie itself functions more on a superficial level, making it only skin deep for many viewers. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bibi Andersson, Björn Skagestad, (more)
- 1978
In the film, Helen (Laure Dechasnel), a married woman, leaves Paris for Zurich after breaking up with her lover. Near the border, a fellow passenger, mistakenly takes her passport. This sets up a situation which plunges her into the midst of international intrigue, a violent struggle between multinational corporations abetted by national secret agencies. This production features such international stars as Joesph Cotten, Donald Pleasence, Dennis Hopper and Bruno Cremer. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruno Cremer, Donald Pleasence, (more)
- 1975
Based on a true story, Costa-Gavras' Special Section (Section Speciale) is set in wartime France, but the parallels to contemporary political persecution are inescapable. A young German naval officer is killed in occupied Paris. The supplicative Vichy government sets about to locate the perpetrators. Four idealistic young Frenchman are arrested, tortured and slated for execution. It is clear that it doesn't matter whether they're guilty or not: the flames of totalitarianism must be stoked, even with the blood of the innocent. And it's especially convenient if the accused are thoroughly expendable in the eyes of the authorities. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Louis Seigner, Michel Lonsdale, (more)
- 1973
A kaleidoscope of images from history populate this skillfully animated French feature. The story concerns a history professor whose ideas about human history cause him distress. Amid a flurry of newsreel-type images, Joan of Arc's trial is shown. Another theme which emerges is of two ages (in the far past and far future) in which naked humans fight one another with animalistic aggression. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Françoise Brion, Francois Perrot, (more)
- 1971
The cigar-smoking French writer, George Sand (Lucia Bose) and her lover, the composer-pianist Chopin (Christopher Sandford) have rented a former monastery in Mallorca as a winter retreat. They have even shipped a piano to the site, so that Chopin can continue his work. However, what promised to be a warm, sunny vacation turns sour as the locals disapprove of Sand, the servants are surly and mysterious, and the monastery is cold. She has her revenge, however. She wrote the book A Winter in Mallorca about her miserable winter retreat. This film follows that book closely, with concern for historical accuracy, which did not increase the Spanish filmmakers' popularity with their countrymen. This is a Spanish language film, with no dubbing or subtitles. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1971
In this French-language film, Albin (Henri Serre) is a mercenary soldier. Sure, he's paid to kill, but he only agrees to jobs where he's killing those who need to be killed. Anyway, he trusts his buddies, and they trust him: in this case with a big haul of money they found in a jungle shoot-out. When he returns to France one of the first things he does, quite by chance, is to go see the act of Le Grande Magic Circus. The circus keeps coming into his life for the rest of the movie, as he tries to live a "regular" life. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Henri Serre, Marianne Eggerickx, (more)
- 1969
This suspense story finds a severed hand leading to the psychological demise of the people who come in contact with it. The hand is removed when the murderers fail to stuff all of the victim's body into a trunk. The mastermind of the killing is murdered by his wife and her lover in a macabre scene that parallels the fate of the first victim. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Natalie Delon, Henri Serre, (more)
- 1967
In the third installment of the parodic Fantomas series, the eponymous arch criminal imposes the "right-to-live" tax on the rich, threatening to kill those who dare not to pay. Journalist Fandor (Jean Marais) and commissioner Juve (Louis de Funès) are invited to the Scottish castle of Lord McRashley (Jean-Roger Caussimon), one of Fantomas' potential victims, who has decided to set a trap for the elusive fiend. ~ Yuri German, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Marais, Louis de Funès, (more)
- 1966
Agent OSS 117 Frederick Stafford tries to stop a group of terrorists who plan to bomb an unnamed Far East country in this routine spy story. The villains demand money from the United States and threaten to launch missiles armed with atomic bombs unless their terms are met. Marina Vlady co-stars with Henri Serre and Inkijinoff in this fourth in a series featuring OSS 117. The lucky agent gets a bath from a bevy of Japanese beauties before taking on a sword-wielding Samurai. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frederick Stafford, Marina Vlady, (more)
- 1964
This movie is the first in a trilogy that parodied the popular silent Fantomas serials of director Louis Feuillade, which followed the adventures of the titular master criminal created by writers Pierre Souvestre and Marcel Allain. After a daring jewelry heist signed "Fantomas," police commissioner Juve (Louis de Funès) goes on national television claiming that Fantomas doesn't exist and that there is no reason for public concern. Riding the wave of public interest, journalist Fandor (Jean Marais) publishes a bogus interview with the master criminal. Fantomas (also played by Jean Marais) doesn't appreciate the joke and kidnaps Fandor to teach him a lesson. A master of disguise, he pulls an even more daring robbery wearing the Fandor mask. Comic relief is provided by commissioner Juve's awkward attempts to capture the elusive arch-criminal. ~ Yuri German, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Marais, Louis de Funès, (more)
- 1963
For anyone not up on Italian history during World War II, this interesting docudrama about the eventual execution by the Nazis of Mussolini's son-in-law Count Ciano (Frank Wolf) will have a few gaps. The war is ending and the fascists have clearly lost, so in their last-ditch effort to lay the blame elsewhere they choose Galeazzo Ciano, their former Foreign Minister, as one of several "traitors" to the fascist cause. Neither Mussolini himself nor an offer of the Count's diaries have any effect on the Verona-based trial which condemned and executed several others as traitors. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Silvana Mangano, Vivi Gioi, (more)
Maurice Ronet plays an alcoholic writer, Alain Leroy, who is on the verge of suicide (his character is based on writer Jacques Rigaut, who killed himself in 1929). The psychiatrist assigned to Leroy is no help, advising his patient to seek a reconciliation with his wife, who is still smarting from Leroy's recent liaison with Lydia (Lena Skerla). Still obsessed with the notion of taking his own life, Leroy plans to stage his demise on July 23. A last-ditch effort to jolly himself out of his doldrums fails, and Leroy, with a picture of Marilyn Monroe at his side, snuffs himself out. Though a case study of a man victimized by his own isolationism, The Fire Within has some surprising random optimistic moments. The French title for The Fire Within is Le Feu Follet, which was also the title of the novel by Pierre Drieu La Rochelle (another suicide!) from which this film was adapted. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Maurice Ronet, Jeanne Moreau, (more)
Acclaimed French director François Truffaut's third and, for many viewers, best film is an adaptation of a semi-autobiographical novel by Henri-Pierre Roché. Set between 1912 and 1933, it stars Oskar Werner as the German Jules and Henri Serre as the Frenchman Jim, kindred spirits who, while on holiday in Greece, fall in love with the smile on the face of a sculpture. Back in Paris, the smile comes to life in the person of Catherine (Jeanne Moreau); the three individuals become constant companions, determined to live their lives to the fullest despite the world war around them. When Jules declares his love for Catherine, Jim agrees to let Jules pursue her, despite his own similar feelings; Jules and Catherine marry and have a child (Sabine Haudepin), but Catherine still loves Jim as well. An influential film that has grown in stature over the decades, Jules et Jim was often viewed by the counterculture of the 1960s as a cinematic proponent of the free-love movement, but in actuality the picture is a statement against such a way of life. Despite the bond shared by Jules, Jim, and Catherine, their ménage à trois is doomed to fail; and Catherine's inability to choose between the two men leads to tragic consequences for all three. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jeanne Moreau, Oskar Werner, (more)
- 1961
The political overtones in this action-oriented drama may be a little murky outside of its time and place, yet the story is well told. Clement (Jean-Louis Tritignant) is a right-wing rabblerouser married to aspiring young actress Anne (Romy Schneider). He belongs to an underground terrorist group determined to spread chaos among the Western nations in order to eventually gain political control and then expand their activities. At the moment, he is taking part in an assassination scheme aimed at a major labor leader that ultimately fails because of an informer. Clement takes off to find the culprit, leaving Anne in the care of his supposed friend Paul (Henri Serre). That turns out to be a mistake on several different counts. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Romy Schneider, Jean-Louis Trintignant, (more)
