Jean Vilar Movies
French actor Jean Vilar primarily made his name on-stage as both a distinguished performer and a director. Following studies at the University of Montpellier and the University of Paris, he worked as a jazz musician. He then began his acting and directorial career. The few sojourns Vilar made into feature films were generally memorable ones. A one-time director of the Theatre National Populaire, Vilar served as the manager of the Palais de Chaillot from 1951 until 1963. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide- 1971
This well-made period melodrama, set in late 19th-century France, highlights the worldly, flirtatious fashion of the day and the demands of genuine piety on the one hand and debauchery on the other. Aurore (Francoise Fabian) is a high-minded but flirtatious woman of society who charmingly refuses the attentions of one man, claiming she would have had to completely lost heart to marry such an old miser as he. She falls for completely debauched charmer Raphael (Maurice Ronet) and hopes at first to win him to a life of virtue. Unsuccessful in this and deeply obsessed with him, she then simply hopes to win him and, in the attempt, enters further and further into his depraved world. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1970
In this French drama, Nina (Catherine Jourdan) is the much-loved daughter of a country family. In turn, she loves her anti-Semitic virago of an aunt, her gentle father, and especially her effeminate cousin, whom she has a crush on. During the Nazi occupation, she falls in love with a German officer, and the difficulties and compromises she goes through then help her to evolve into a fully grown woman. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1969
When a museum depicting the violence man inflicts on himself opens, a doctor, a woman and a museum official go through the building before the grand opening. Discussing the subject matter, their attention quickly turns to the May Day riots that plagued Paris. This symbolic film tries to portray all victims of violence as Christlike figures. Stock footage of war and suffering are used to underscore the effectiveness of the subject matter in this uneven feature. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Danièle Delorme, Jean Vilar, (more)
- 1956
The Spanish Inquisition has targeted a helpless group of Belgians as heretics and is tracking them down. Suddenly, an unknown young man sweeps into the picture and saves them. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1956
That merry prankster Till Eulenspiegel is at it again in this lively Franco-German production. Director Gerard Phillipe does double duty as Till, a fun-loving youth who turns freedom fighter after his father is burned as a heretic during the Spanish Inquisition. In public, Till is a carefree buffoon; but under cover of night, he fights the good fight on behalf of the Flemmish cause. The fact that the film is not to be taken seriously is underlined by the scene wherein the Spanish soldiers are routed by a gang of ice-skating rebels! Les Aventures de Till L'Espiegle was partially financed by East German business concerns, a rarety for an international release of the era. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gérard Philipe, Jean Vilar, (more)
- 1951
Jocelyn was inspired by the Lamartine poem of the same name. Played by Jean Desailly, the title character is a 16th-century divinity student who is forced to hide from the authorities. He befriends a young boy, and before long the two have sworn eternal loyalty and fidelity. It comes as quite a shock, then, when Jocelyn discovers that his faithful chum is actually a girl (Simone Valerie). Can he remain loyal to his religious vows with such a beautiful young creature in such close proximity? A bit stilted at times, Jocelyn works best during its exterior sequences, attractively lensed in the French mountain regions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Desailly, Simone Valere, (more)
- 1946
Marcel Carne's 1946 production La Porte de la Nuit was released in the U.S. four years later as Gates of the Night. Scripted by Carne's longtime collaborator Jacques Prevert, the film is set in Paris just after its liberation from the Nazis. The script points out that this was not only a time for rejoicing, but a period of guilt and remorse, especially for those who cooperated with the Nazis, overtly or otherwise. In one of his first starring roles, Yves Montand plays a former member of the French underground who carries on a furtive romance with the wife (Nathalie Nattier) of a wealthy man. Others essential to the action are Sergi Reggiani as a snivelly informer and Christian Simon as a ubiquitous (and obviously symbolic) street musician. A box-office disappointment in France, Gates of the Night did somewhat better abroad. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pierre Brasseur, Serge Reggiani, (more)
