Georges Wilson Movies

This tough-as-nails, crime-themed docudrama constitutes the second installment in a four hour, two-part biopic on the doings of infamous French thug Jacques Mesrine (1936-79), officially regarded for many years as "Public Enemy #1" in Gaul. Here, he is played to the hilt by Vincent Cassel, who underwent massive weight gain and weight loss to properly evoke Mesrine. Picking up where the same year's Mesrine: L'Instinct de Mort left off, this outing covers Mesrine's life from 1973-79. The tale opens in March of '73, with Mesrine in the custody of authorities; he's accused of knowing an equally brutal and frightening mobster, Michel Ardouin (Samuel LeBihan), but aggressively denies this; a thrilling escape and an ugly shoot-out jointly perpetrated by the men, however, reveal the extent of Mesrine's deception. Mesrine, it seems, hasn't merely evolved into a legend in his own time, but a legend of his own making, aggressively feeding his own self-myth by perpetrating one outrageous criminal act after another. His latest ploy, it seems, involves donning a series of elaborate disguises (such as that of a doctor visiting his dying father, or a police inspector making inquiries) that enable him to pull off casino heists and other elaborate felonies. Eventually, Mesrine grows listless and bored with his own braggadocio and turns to extremist political factions for "inspiration," such as the Red Brigades and the Baader-Meinhof Gang, before an ugly incident with Parisian authorities brings him tumbling down from his throne. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

A glorious dancer and a beautiful actress, Marquise (originally known as mademoiselle Du Parc) won the hearts of some of mid-17th-century France's brightest lights, including Moliere, the actor Racine and even the Sun King himself, Louis XIV. Beginning with considerable comedy and ending with almost Grecian tragedy, this lush costumer recounts the story of her life amidst the muck and splendor of medieval Paris and beyond. It was Moliere and his companion Gros-Rene who discovered Marquise dancing in the rain before an eager crowd of men. The girl's father collects the money they offer while she dutifully services each and every one. Moliere, Gros-Rene and their acting troupe pause briefly to watch her dance. The rotund comic Gros-Rene immediately falls head over heels, and even though she is with an old man he rushes up to propose and offers to steal her away to Paris. Marquise accepts and so launches her career. Though there will be many other men in her life, she keeps a special place in her heart reserved only for her unlikely spouse. Marquise later becomes involved with Racine. The two work together often, but as his career takes off towards the stars, hers goes in another direction, one that leads to tragedy. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

This charming motion picture relives the beautiful childhood memories of noted film director and writer Marcel Pagnol. While attending school in Marseilles, Marcel Julien Ciamaca daydreams about the nearby hills where he and his family spend vacations at a cottage. It is not enough to sojourn there over Christmas, Easter, and summer holidays; Marcel wants to be there all the time, to roam the fields, climb the rock faces, and enjoy other simple pleasures with his mother, father, and siblings. And then something marvelous happens. His mother Augustine (Nathalie Roussel) persuades his father Joseph (Philippe Caubere), a schoolteacher, to allow the family to spend each weekend at the cottage. Because they have no car, they must ride public transport part of the way, then walk the remaining five miles. However, a former pupil of Joseph's shows them a shortcut that crosses private estates and reduces the distance to only one mile. So the family enjoys weekend after wonderful weekend in the hills. Marcel plays with a country boy, picks thyme for the family's alfresco dinners, and meets a girl whom he rescues from spiders. Though she is an imperious little lass, Marcel is quite taken with her and even performs feats of derring-do to impress her. These carefree weekend outings continue until one day a heartless watchman charges the Pagnols with trespassing on an estate on their way to the cottage. Woe is Joseph. He believes his very proper school will fire him. But when the school officials call him in, they promote him! They know nothing of his trespassing, for Joseph's former pupil has tricked the watchman into dropping the charge. Then more good news comes; Marcel has won an academic prize. The film has a bittersweet ending in which Marcel, as an adult, reviews what has happened to the family members since those wonderful days when life was good and all was right with the world. ~ Mike Cummings, All Movie Guide

This poetic French drama about the inner experience of a returning World War I soldier, is based on the much-loved and highly regarded novel La Vouivre by Marcel Ayme. Georges Wilson, a well-established presence on the French stage, makes his filmmaking debut as a screenwriter and director. A "vouivre" is a wood-nymph, beautiful but completely lacking in human sensibilities. At the start of the film, Arsene (Lambert Wilson), a discharged soldier, returns to his family's farm. His return provokes quite a reaction, as he had been presumed dead. He is tormented by memories of the war, and finds brief consolation in his experiences with the wood-nymph (Laurent Treil). However, despite her magical qualities, it becomes clear that even a peasant farmer has more richness and depth to his character than the soulless "vouivre" can ever attain. In the novel, it's not clear whether the wood-nymph is real or the product of hallucinations caused by a head injury Arsene sustained in the war. In this movie version, the reality of the "vouivre" is never questioned. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

When Patricia Caron (Nicole García) watches a television debate, she is shocked to hear her long-dead husband described as a war criminal and a torturer. Her husband Marcel (Jacques Perrin) had died more than two decades earlier when French troops fought in Algeria -- and although she had been married only a short time before he went off to his death, she was certain that he could never have tortured anyone. Irate and determined to clear her husband's name, she takes the television speaker to court -- where once the case progresses, there are flashbacks to the war and the activities of Captain Marcel Caron. As the court case drags on, director Pierre Schoendoerffer has hewn to acceptable topics and avoided the controversy surrounding the French army's behavior in Algeria. (French forces took over Algiers in 1830 and ruled Algeria as a colony for 132 years. In 1954, Algerian independence fighters started an armed revolt; in 1957, French troops were sent to quell the revolt, but by 1961, French insurgents were fighting alongside Algerians against the loyal French army and were defeated. Finally, on July 3, 1962, France granted independence to Algeria. The French sensitivity to their conduct in this war was still running high when this film was released.) ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Andras (Zygmunt Malanowicz), an older man employed as a furniture designer, gets a life-jarring shock when he returns from a trip and finds that some of the work he developed has been given over to a younger employee. This instigates a mid-life crisis over his own identity and his sense of security and self-worth, all exacerbated by a recent divorce and estrangement from his son. Recognizing that he needs help, the man goes for therapy and starts to face his problems. Therapy counteracts some of the damage of living, and the man starts to consider his son, his relationships with women, and his father in a different light. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

The 20th century not only produced the modern woes of super-highway crashes and interminable traffic jams, but also movies that center around the same theme. In this drama about life and death in the fast, middle, and slow lanes, Juliette (Carole Laure) finds herself stranded on a busy highway leading from Paris south to cities like Lyon. She was supposed to meet her lover, and is driving his car when she stops at their appointed roadside rendezvous. Instead, their deception has been discovered by her lover's wife, who is waiting for her, and drives the car away in a huff. Juliette is left to thumb it back to Paris. She soon hooks up with Arthur Colonna (Jean Yanne), who gives her a ride, and the two begin to wend their way northward along the highway. Interspersed with their journey is a series of cinematic "asides" that delve into tragic mishaps, such as the aftermath of a crash in which a woman was killed, her husband stumbling along the highway, still in shock -- and the brief story of a surgeon named Kalendarian (Georges Wilson) who struggles to find the needed transfusions for the crash victims on this busy weekend. The relationship between Juliette and Arthur begins to turn from casual to interested when they suffer a bad accident from which they both manage to come out unscathed -- leaving an indelible effect on their growing relationship. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Based on a popular novel by Pierre-Jakez Helias, Horse of Pride is set in a hardscrabble peasant community in Brittany. Covering the years 1908 through 1918, the film concentrates on the lives, customs and aspirations of the community's populace. The visuals are complemented not by dialogue but by "voice of God" narration. This is a wise stylistic choice, since the central theme of the film is the perpetuation of Brittany's culture via oral, rather than written, history. Horse of Pride is an unusually straightforward effort from the normally ultrastylistic director Claude Chabrol. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Though they are surprisingly ill-suited for their chosen vocation of thievery, the three men (Aldo Maccione, Charles Gerard and Julien Guiomar) in this story are sufficiently charming to intrigue the wife (Mireille Darc) of a police inspector (Georges Wilson) who is persecuting them based on his mistaken belief that they are involved in more serious crimes. Indeed, in this comedy she is so taken with them that she goes out on a few capers with them, including one which sets them up for life, enabling them to retire in the tropics, far outside the inspector's jurisdiction. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Dear Inspector and Dear Detective were the English-language titles of Philippe De Broca's Tendre Poulet. Annie Girardot plays the old flame of Greek professor Philippe Noiret. The prof tries to rekindle the flames of passion, but Girardot seems curiously preoccupied. It turns out that she's a detective on the trail of a murderer. The film served as the basis for the 1979 American made-for-TV movie Dear Detective, starring Brenda Vaccaro and Arlen Dean Snyder. A DeBroca-directed sequel, Jupiter's Thigh, was filmed in 1979, again with Annie Girardot and Philippe Noiret. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Simon (O.E. Hasse) fought in the Spanish Civil War (1936-39), but now he is an old man, readying himself for death. His daily life is filled with memories, reveries, feelings, and small but meaningful encounters; these are the stuff the film is made up of. Some of the musings are of a hallucinatory nature, as when he meets with a tramp during imaginary walks. Others are more ordinary, as when he interacts with his son's family or enjoys looking at the pretty women in the building across the street. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

In this French fantasy/comedy, the Maoist Chinese, by some miracle, have occupied Paris (and France) overnight. The patience of these stern, work-oriented and quite puritanical communists is finally completely worn down by the quarrelsome, cynical and decadent French, who cannot cooperate properly even when they are willing. Unappreciated, ignored, and thoroughly disgusted, the Chinese soon pack up and leave. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Richard Lester's adaptation of The Three Musketeers was only the latest of many when released in 1974, but it arrived with a spirit all its own, one influenced as much by Lester's '60s work as the Alexandre Dumas classic. Even so, it followed the plot of Dumas' novel fairly closely, its liberties in interpretation taken elsewhere. Coming off the success of Cabaret, Michael York plays D'Artagnan, the provincial, would-be swashbuckler who travels to Paris to make his name. There he encounters the eponymous heroes: cynical Athos (Oliver Reed), dashing Aramis (Richard Chamberlain), and arrogant Porthos (Frank Finlay). The trio introduces him to the world of court intrigue as they work to protect the Queen (Geraldine Chaplin) from the schemes of the villainous Richelieu (Charlton Heston) and his followers, Rochefort (Christopher Lee) and Milady (Faye Dunaway). Lester shot the film in conjunction with its sequel, The Four Musketeers. Originally intended as a single film, the split prompted a lawsuit from the cast demanding payment for both films. ~ Keith Phipps, All Movie Guide