Jean Tissier Movies
French actor Jean Tissier played character and comic roles in scores of films. He got his start on the stage in the early '20s and made his film debut in 1937. Before becoming an actor, he was a journalist. In 1945, he published his autobiography, Sans Maquillage. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
This Roger Vadim production was released in the US as ...And God Created Woman. Vadim's then-wife Brigitte Bardot plays the central character, a curvaceous nymphet with a voracious sexual appetite. In fact, it isn't what Bardot does in bed but what she might do that drives the three principal male characters (Curd Jurgens, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Christian Marquand) into an erotic frenzy. Most available prints of ...And God Created Woman have been heavily edited to conform with the prevailing censorial standards of 1957. Vadim remade his own film in 1987. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Brigitte Bardot, Curd Jürgens, (more)
- 1954
It's the Paris Life (C'est La Vie Parisienne) is set at the turn of the century. The point of the film is summed up by the old French adage which begins "Plus ca change": The more things change, the more they remain the same. Director Alfred Rode uses two romantic subplots -- one set in the 1890s, the other in the 1950s -- to illustrate how little "affaires d'amour" have changed in 60 years. The characters in the modern portion of the film are the descendants of the people introduced in the earlier scenes, with the actors introduced in the 19th century scenes playing their own 20th-century grandchildren. The most interesting performance is offered by Philip Lemaire, cast in the dual role of a dissipated nobleman and a jaded jazz trumpeter. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claudine Dupuis, Raymond Bussières, (more)
- 1960
Jean-Pierre Cassel is ideally cast as the hopelessly optimistic Candide in this noir updating of Voltaire's classic 18th-century social satire. Candide has been assured by his ivory-tower professor (Pierre Brasseur) that whatever fate befalls him, he will be all the better for it. Armed with the confidence of the ignorant, Candide is abused by practically everyone he comes across (he has a particularly rough time in a German POW camp), but somehow emerges with his faith in humanity unscathed. His picaresque adventures take him all the way to the Americas, both North and South. Just as in most stage versions of Candide, some of the supporting actors play double and triple roles: Robert Manuel, for example, portrays all the German officers Candide meets. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pierre Brasseur, Michel Simon, (more)
- 1938
Crossroads is the English title for Carrefour, directed in France by German-born Kurt (later Curtis) Bernhardt. Suzy Prin and Jules Berry star in this master blend of amnesia, romance and deceit. A respected French diplomat is blackmailed by criminals, who insist that the diplomat, who'd once suffered a loss of memory, had been a crook in his previous "life". When Kurt Bernhardt emigrated to the US, he was signed by Warner Bros., thus had no opportunity to work on MGM's remake of Carrefour (again titled Crossroads) starring William Powell, Hedy Lamarr and Basil Rathbone. The story would be adapted a third time for the 1950 British melodrama Dead Man's Shoes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jules Berry, Charles Vanel, (more)
- 1951
Relying on sexual encounters to maintain interest yet trying for a literary veneer, this is another semi-erotic drama by director Luis Saslavsky. Lina (Belinda Lee) is a prostitute who has attracted the romantic ardor of two half-brothers. She eventually decides to marry one of them but soon their relationship deteriorates. Underneath it all, Lina is not yet convinced that she is loved for herself -- and her days as a prostitute come back to haunt her relationship. As time goes on, however, she comes to realize that one of the brothers is honestly in love with her. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Tissier, Armand Bernard, (more)
- 1938
The Courier of Lyons stars Pierre Blanchar as both hero and villain. Blanchar is introduced as Joseph Lesurques, who has the misfortune of bearing a remarkable resemblance to notorious outlaw Dubosque. Arrested for a robbery and murder committed by his lookalike, Lesurques cannot account for his actions when the dirty deeds were perpertrated, and is summarily sentenced to be hanged. It is up to Lesurques' wife Mina (Dita Parlo) to clear her husband-but Mina has every reason to see the philandering Lesurques executed. The otherwise grim courtroom sequences provides a brief and very welcome bit of comedy relief when a cheery prostitute (Sylvia Bataille) offers to be a witness for the defense. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pierre Blanchar, Dita Parlo, (more)
- 1969
- R
An international cast headlines this espionage comedy that centers on a world-wide hunt for stolen American defense papers. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Peter Lawford, Ira VonFurstenberg, (more)
- 1940
The French Way (Fausse Alert) stars American expatriate musical star Josephine Baker as a Parisian cabaret singer. The plot is your standard "star-crossed lovers" melange, distinguished by the conspicuous lack of clothing on the female characters. The coy ingenue is played by 18-year-old Micheline Presle, several years removed from her international stardom vis-a-vis Devil in the Flesh. Because Josephine Baker was black, and because she performed in the nude for the most part, The French Way didn't make it to American shores until 1952. Even then, Ms. Baker's climactic feather dance was entirely excised, though the film spends its last two reels building up to it. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Micheline Presle, Josephine Baker, (more)
- 1949
This French film version of Colette's best-selling novel Gigi predated both the 1950 stage adaptation and the 1958 Hollywood musical of the same name. Set in fin de siecle Paris, The story is the familiar one about 16-year-old Gigi (Daniele Delorme), a waif-like creature who is trained to become a Parisian courtesan by her worldly wise Aunt, Mme. Alvarez (Yvonne de Bray). The girl's first assignment is to serve as the "arm ornament" of wealthy playboy Gaston (Frank Villard), whose previous experiences with women have turned him into something of misogynist. When Gigi falls genuinely in love with Gaston, Mme. Alvarez is appalled: after all, true love is bad for business. Gaston is likewise taken aback by Gigi's devotion -- until he realizes with startling suddenness that he has fallen for her. Long unavailable in the U.S. due to the Oscar-winning MGM musical remake, Gigi happily resurfaced on American cable television in the mid-1990s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yvonne de Bray, Danièle Delorme, (more)
- 1961
A generally destructive atmosphere settles over this New Wave drama about a trio of youths looking to debunk hypocrisy wherever they find it. One of the early films by Claude Chabrol, the tale looks at the relationship of Ronald (Jean-Claude Brialy), Ambroisine (Bernadette Lafont), and Arthur (Charles Belmont). Arthur and Ronald have their differences, but the three join up to knock the air out of the wind-bags of pomposity, puncture the veneer of the gallingly elitist art world, and do combat in other arenas where people are less than honest. But Ronald has not forgotten an early offense he suffered at Arthur's hands, and soon the relationships in the trio start to change. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean-Claude Brialy, Bernadette Lafont, (more)
