Claude Confortes Movies
Jean-Jacques Beineix's Betty Blue stars Béatrice Dalle as the title character, a mentally unbalanced and sexually aggressive free spirit who becomes involved with Zorg (Jean-Hugues Anglade), a repairman moonlighting as a writer. The two engage in a variety of sexual encounters, and grow more passionate toward each other. Betty finds Zorg's book and is aggressively supportive; over time, her mental and emotional instability begin to catch up with her and drive her to the point of romantic obsession with Zorg -- leading to a grisly and shocking conclusion. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean-Hugues Anglade, Béatrice Dalle, (more)
- 1986
With embarrassing dialogue and a theatrical style, this feature-length comedy is based on cartoon characters and is equally two-dimensional. After some misguided attempts at mixing with the riff-raff, the young rich heiress Paulette (Jeanne Marine) decides to start giving her money away to anyone who sounds like they really need it. Considering this to be an act of insanity, her greedy and crooked estate administrator gets her institutionalized. In retaliation, Paulette escapes with a fellow inmate, and after several misadventures (some nudity here) she finds herself nearly drowned and still no closer to regaining her estate. She is saved by some bargemen who decide to help her out -- and the adventure continues. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Luis Rego, Catherine Leprince, (more)
- 1984
Following a trend that may have begun with the first Blondie movie in 1938, this is an acted interpretation of a popular comic strip by the acerbic cartoonist Jean-Marc Reiser, who wrote the dialog for Vive Les Femmes but died before shooting was completed. Reiser's comic strip emphasized the lowest common denominator in intimate relationships, where physically flawed examples of both sexes go after each other with unbridled enthusiasm. Roland Giraud plays a womanizer, and Maurice Risch an unhappy loner whose manners will undoubtedly keep him that way, in this disconnected series of uneven skits that play to no unifying theme. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Maurice Risch, Roland Giraud, (more)
- 1981
Georges Wolinski wrote this comedy in conjunction with Paul Claudon (producer) and Claude Confortes (director), based on his own cartoon strips, and in particular, his character "Georges le Roi" (Francis Perrin in the film.) Georges is the self-styled "king of sex appeal" whose creatively brilliant words of love manage to enchant women right into his bed, no problem. At least, no problem until an enterprising woman decides to record Georges' flights of romantic poetics and market them for everyman's use. Suddenly, blissful anonymity is gone and a world is waiting with baited breath to meet the incredible Georges - but woe to Georges, the woman's treacherous act against the once libidinous bachelor has an unexpected result. How to remedy the situation then, before the truth about Georges gets out? ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Francis Perrin, Marie-Christine Descouard, (more)
- 1970
After laboring in obscurity for several years, French filmmaker Claude Sautet finally struck a responsive chord with moviegoers in Les Choses de la Vie. The plot isn't much: the hero, businessman Michel Piccoli, must choose between his wife and his mistress, two women whom he loves with equal fervor. It is what Sautet does with the material that lifts the film above the ordinary. The director puts the central character's plight in context with his ongoing concerns over his job, his income, and his relationship with his family. In Choses de la Vie Sautet has nothing but the warmest feelings for his characters, which results in more three-dimensionality that might normally be expected in so banal a plotline. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michel Piccoli, Romy Schneider, (more)
Having been forced into minor parts for several years by a debilitating illness, veteran film actor Michel Simon made a triumphant return to leading roles in the charming, poignant The Two of Us (Le Vieil Homme et L'Enfant). Simon plays a likeable old soak with one significant character flaw: he is a flagrant anti-Semite. During the Nazi occupation of Paris, 8-year-old Jewish lad Alain Cohen is sent to the country, there to live with the parents of his family's Catholic friends. One of those parents is, inevitably, Simon. Taking a liking to Alain, and unaware that the boy is Jewish, Simon attempts to introduce the lad to the doctrine of anti-Semitism. The boy plays along with the old man, teasing him about his prejudices. Despite their obvious philosophical differences, Simon and Alain form a strong and affectionate bond. Director Claude Berri, whose films have often touched upon the Jewish experience in France, once more draws from his own experiences to weave a sensitive, seriocomic scenario. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michel Simon, Alain Cohen, (more)
By 1964, it was possible for a major studio to make a film touching upon the Spanish Civil War without having to answer to some senate investigating committee or other. Based on Emeric Pressburger's novel A Mouse on Sunday, Behold a Pale Horse stars Gregory Peck as a war veteran who continues waging a one-man offensive years after hostilities have officially ceased. Exiled to France, Peck is lured back to Spain by vengeful police captain Anthony Quinn. Priest Omar Sharif advises Peck that he's being tricked, but Peck is determined to return to Spain to bid farewell to his dying mother Mildred Dunnock. Halfway through, the film bogs down into ponderous preachifying and moralizing, but overall the film is worth a glance. In 1966, Behold a Pale Horse was scheduled to be telecast on a major American network, but was cancelled at the last minute, reportedly at the behest of the Spanish government. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gregory Peck, Anthony Quinn, (more)
- 1962
In this gentle anti-war comedy, a class of French schoolboys divides into two factions who begin to battle each other, with the victors claiming the buttons off the clothes of the vanquished. One day, some of the boys pull a strategic coup by running into battle naked, therefore leaving their enemies nothing to steal. However, after this stunning victory, one of their number turns traitor to the other side, helping them plot a secret attack that leaves the recent champions in defeat. The informer is eventually found out and punished for his crimes, so he takes the matter to a higher authority and tells his parents he's been beaten up by bullies. Soon Mom and Dad are making trouble for their son's schoolmates, with the culprits facing a stay in juvenile hall. La Guerre des Boutons was written and directed by Yves Robert, who had a distinguished career both in front of and behind the camera in the French cinema. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Richard, Jacques Dufilho, (more)
