Marcel Camus Movies

Released internationally in 1984, Where the Sky Begins was the last directorial effort of Marcel Camus, best known for helming Black Orpheus, who died in 1982. Clocking in at 420 minutes overall, Camus broke the film down into 7 one-hour installments. This mammoth French miniseries traces the development of manned flight from 1896 to 1909. The central character is Edward Dabert, without whose financial assistance many of the pioneers of aviation would have never gotten off the ground. Part One, appropriately titled "1896," introduces Dabert, who is mesmerized by the glider experiments of the era. The second 60-minute episode of this series is titled "1897-1903." Among the fabled manned-flight trailblazers introduced herein are the Voisin Brothers and Clement Ader. Episode Three is titled "1903-1904", which should be indication enough that Dabert will cross paths with the Wright Brothers of America. The fourth episode, titled "1905-1907" dramatizes the manned-flight advances of Santos-Dumont. Once more, aviation enthusiast Edward Dabert makes the march of technology possible. The fifth episode is titled "1907". The field of manned aviation has come a long way since 1896, the year in which the first episode was set. Now it is Dabert's son who takes a hand in things when he meets Germany's Count Zeppelin. In part six, titled "1908", financier Edward Dabert once more strikes a blow for advancing technology. It is Dabert who tries to convince the Wright Brothers of the military importance of their lighter-than-air craft. (This particular episode is a bit more ominous than the preceding ones). Part seven, titled "1909", introduces the courageous Gallic pilot Bleriot. It is his mission to achieve what many consider to be utterly impossible: to successfully fly over the 20-mile English channel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Leon (Bourvil) is the owner of a cafe in a small town in occupied France in this comedic war story. Like most French of the time, he tries to get along with the German invaders. When his daughter (Sara Franchetti) brings home a downed British aviator, Leon becomes involved by helping the man escape to England. Through a strange turn of events, he accompanies the pilot back to Britain. Leon is thought to be a spy at first, but soon he is trained by British intelligence to help the Allied cause back in France. This was one of the last films for Bourvil, the beloved French comedian who often played the common man caught up in circumstances beyond his control. Terry-Thomas plays a British captain with typical flair. The color process is not credited. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

Two young lovers are broken up when the young man's mobster boss forces him to take over a rock-and-roll nightclub. Philippe (Jacques Perrin) is under orders to incite riots at the club, which lead to a shutdown. His naive girlfriend Nora (Catherine Jourdan) loses faith in him until they are brought together by an inebriated newspaper man. After taking over the club, Philippe is ousted by the gangster. The disillusioned youth become even more upset when they have no place to dance away their energy and rebellious tendencies. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

One of the rare Western films to take advantage of the spectacular setting of the temples at Angkor in Cambodia, L'Oiseau de Paradis is directed by Marcel Camus. The French ruled Cambodia until 1954 and are well-aware of its attractions -- and so Camus was prepared when he went in to film the annual boat races in Phnom Penh, the boxing matches, and the royal dancers that are incorporated into the story. The tale itself is relatively simple. A beautiful dancer has two admirers -- one is a young worker whom she has only met by accident, and the other is an unscrupulous businessman. The worker had been training as a Buddhist monk and as his interest in the dancer and the businessman's pursuit of the woman develop, the dancer and the former monk end up at the archaeological site of Angkor. There, Buddhists still worship in the temples and it is in this setting that the businessman kills them both. Reincarnation being accepted as truth in Cambodia, the story implies that the ill-fated young couple would be joined together in the future. This film was made only six or seven years before fighting began in Angkor and the French were forced out of the area. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Black Orpheus (Orfeu Negro) is literally what its title suggests: a retelling of the "Orpheus and Eurydice" legend enacted by black performers. This time the setting is the annual Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. Orpheus (Breno Mello) is a streetcar conductor; Eurydice (Marpessa Dawn) has just jilted her lover and is attempting to escape his wrath. Orpheus himself falls in love with Eurydice, whereupon her ex-lover, disguised as the Angel of Death shows up and kills Eurydice. To reclaim his lost love, Orpheus enters "Hell" (the Rio morgue) and uses supernatural methods to revive the dead girl. A multi-award winner on the international film scene, Black Orpheus features a samba musical score by Luiz Bonfa and Antonio Carlos Jobim. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Mort en Fraude (aka Fraudulent Death and Fugitive in Saigon) was co-adapted by Jean Hougron from his own novel. The inward-looking plotline deals with France's Indochina debacle of 1950. Agreeing to smuggle a package into Saigon, apolitical Frenchman Horcier (Daniel Gelin) is waylaid and robbed by smugglers. Only when he is left broke and vulnerable in the middle of this Southeast Asian French colony does Horcier realize to what extent the Vietnamese, Laotians and Cambodians have been victimized by the West. Forgetting his own problems, he casts his lots with the insurrectionists. Mort en Fraude was the directorial debut of Marcel Camus, who was elevated to international fame with his next venture, Black Orpheus. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide