Maurice Cloche Movies
- 1967
In this mysterious crime drama, a down-and-out Parisian woman finds herself entangled in a white slavery-narcotics ring. They send her on a boat for South America. There she gets engaged to a sailor, and upon her arrival decides to fight against those who have enslaved her. She suffers terribly, but eventually she learns that the mysterious stranger who has been causing friction between rival rings is a clever Interpol agent on assignment to destroy the gang. This allows the woman to return to her beloved; happiness ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1967
In this stylish crime drama, a smooth-talking insurance investigator looks into a bank robbery and ends up breaking up two famous gangs involved in a drug war. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Yanne
- 1960
This undistinguished action film by Maurice Cloche is set in Los Angeles and with ample corpses and nudity, unfolds the tale of a series of murders -- the victims are all prostitutes. A real thin-man detective by the name of Al (Philippe Clay) gets involved in the case and slowly starts to ferret out evidence. Between the women in his life and his weakness for scotch, Al is busy but he still finds the time to kill off a few bad guys and stack up the clues that lead him to a bogus funeral parlor and a brutal procurer. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Philippe Clay, Dario Moreno, (more)
- 1959
This conventional teen drama by director Maurice Cloche centers around the upheavals in the life of young Martine (Pascale Audret). She is plagued both by poverty and by uncaring, problem parents who in no way can provide the kind of nurturing that Martine needs during her adolescent years. As a result of her family situation, Martine runs away from home and gets involved with a group of teens and young adults from the wrong side of the moral tracks. What happens to her during this time fills in the remainder of this 90-minute feature. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sophie Daumier, Jany Clair, (more)
- 1958
This routine story by director Maurice Cloche is about two gangs at war over the possession of a valuable cache of crude diamonds. As the gangs battle it out with each other, a young man is drawn into the conflict by his girlfriend, an aggressive sort of woman in her own way. Before the basically innocent bystander becomes a casualty of the dispute, he falls in love with another woman who manages to lead him away from the conflict. At the same time, the gangs are well on the way to destroying each other. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Pascal, Eleonora Rossi-Drago, (more)
- 1958
This is a standard drama by Maurice Cloche about an uneven struggle against the excesses of pimps and gangsters. Father Herman (Claus Holm) runs a shelter for hookers, and while he takes care of them, he tries to get them away from the pimps and other men who pose a continual threat to their lives. When a young woman is sought after by one of the gangsters, the good Father and several of the hookers, as well as the woman's fiance, band together to protect her. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Georges Marchal, Nicole Berger, (more)
- 1957
The title Marchands de Filles translates to Girl Merchants. This doesn't mean that the characters are female businessmen. Far from it: the "protagonists" are the heads of a white slavery ring, "merchandising" girls to salacious customers. The plotline is the old one about the innocent young aspiring dancer who is sweet-talked into selling her sexual favors, only to be rescued from a Fate Worse Than Death But Better Than Starving by the timely arrival of the authorities. Agnes Laurent plays the imperiled heroine. Marchands de Filles contains a few rough scenes, but the film seems rather restrained when seen today. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Georges Marchal, Agnes Laurent, (more)
- 1955
Yves Massard is Un Missionaire in this inspirational drama. Consumed by wanderlust, novice missionary Massard ventures into the wilds of French colonial Africa. Here he is taken under the wing of mission founder Charles Vanel, who is somewhat wiser in the ways of his chosen profession than the headstrong Massard. The two men form a strong bond, which serves to strengthen the younger man's faith and upgrade the older man's jaundiced opinion of Mankind. Un Missionaire was directed by Maurice Cloche, who also helmed the successful religious epic Monsieur Vincent (1946). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yves Massard, Charles Vanel, (more)
- 1952
Paul Gallico adapted his own short story Never Take No For an Answer in collaboration with his wife Pauline. Filmed on location in the Italian communities of Rome and Assissi, the film relates the simple story of 7-year-old war orphan Peppino (Vittorio Mannunta). When his beloved donkey falls ill, Peppino insists upon transporting the animal to the tomb of St. Francis, patron saint of animals. Denied permission by the local authorities, Peppino decides to take his case all the way to the Pope, and to that end embarks upon a grueling journey to the Vatican. Never Take No for an Answer was remade for television in 1973 as a Hallmark Hall of Fame special. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vittorio Manunta, Denis O'Dea, (more)
- 1951
French filmmaker Maurice Cloche's only 1952 production (and his last effort until 1954) was Domenica. Filmed on the island of Corsica, the story concerns a restless young girl named Domenica (Odile Versois). Anxious to experience life on the mainland, she attaches herself to the first man who pays attention to her, young art-student Patrice (Alain Quiercy). Only when it is too late does Patrice discover that Domenica is mentally unbalanced. The film ran into censorship problems in the U.S. because of a brief "topless" sequence involving Odile Versois. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Odile Versois, Jean-Pierre Kerien, (more)
- 1950
Ne de Pere Iconnu is one of the lesser-known works of versatile French filmmaker Maurice Cloche (of Monsieur Vincent fame). The plot is set in motion by the suicide of an unwed mother. The father of the girl's baby is subsequently tried for murder. The young man's attorney (J. P. Kerien) proves unable to separate his own personal travails from his courtroom activities. Surprisingly for a French film of the postwar era, Ne de Pere Iconnu is often prudishly old-fashioned. The harsh, ultra-realistic photography is by Cloche's frequent collaborator Claude Renoir. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gaby Morlay, Gabrielle Dorziat, (more)
- 1949
Like his earlier Monsieur Vincent, Maurice Cloche's Docteur Laennec is a lovingly rendered biography of a famed humanitarian. In this instance, the subject is the inventor of the stethoscope, who was forced to battle the hidebound medical hierarchy of his time to prove the far-reaching importance of his creation. Cloche wastes little time on Dr. Laennec's private life, adopting instead an episode retelling of his medical accomplishments. The film wasn't altogether adaptable to American screens, since the abundance of dialogue made subtitling (the preferred translation method of the time) difficult. In the title role, Pierre Blanchar once again offers a first-rate characterization. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pierre Blanchar, Pierre Dux, (more)
