Alain Godard Movies
Like The Bear, director Jean-Jacques Annaud's acclaimed animal picture released 15 years prior, Two Brothers offers a family-friendly epic as told through the eyes of its four-legged protagonists, who, in this case, are sibling tiger cubs Koumal and Sangha. Though a life in the jungles of French colonial Indochina circa the 1920s seemed certain, the cubs are separated shortly after their birth when the notorious hunter Aidan McRory (Guy Pearce) kills their father. Koumal is whisked away to a circus, where he is cruelly beaten into submission and forced to perform tricks to earn his keep. Sangha fares better at first -- he lands in the posh estate of a French government official who wants the big cat to serve as a companion for his lonely son, though a series of unforeseen circumstances ultimately finds Sangha in the hands of a man determined to turn him into an aggressive prizefighter. Understandably, neither tiger is happy with his arrangements, and both escape captivity in hopes of returning to the jungle. Unfortunately for them, the prospect of two loose tigers is hardly comforting for the locals, who quickly demand that McRory kill the cubs before they threaten the safety of the village. Once McRory finds the tigers in their natural habitat, however, he faces a crisis of conscience he hadn't thought possible. Two Brothers also features Jean-Claude Dreyfus and Freddie Highmore. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Guy Pearce, Jean-Claude Dreyfus, (more)
A turning point in 20th century war history is the focus of this fact-based account of the 1942-1943 battle of Stalingrad, in which the Germans were finally defeated by Russian influence -- one of the bloodiest battles in World War II history. The film stars Jude Law as Vassili, a marksman from the Urals who is transported to Stalingrad in 1942, and a master German sniper, Major Koenig (Ed Harris). Koenig, an expert German sniper, is determined to eliminate his formidable opponent by any means necessary; meanwhile, Vassili has joined forces with Danilov (Joseph Fiennes), a young Russian political adversary, who is impressed by Vassili's skills and raises his profile in the Soviet Union. Both Vassili and Danilov become involved with Tanya (Rachel Weisz), whose Jewish parents have been captured by the Germans and have forced her to take up with the men on a sniper expedition. Koenig and Vassili begin to develop traps for each other, until fate inevitably must bring the two sharpshooters together. This large-scale production, financed mostly by Teuton companies, also features Bob Hoskins as Nikita Krushchev and Ron Perlman as an aging Russian sniper. ~ Jason Clark, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joseph Fiennes, Jude Law, (more)
- 1995
This was billed as the first dramatic feature to be shot in IMAX 3D. It was first shown at Sony's new IMAX 3D Theater in New York on an eight-story high screen. The story is based on the true-life tale of two French aviators, Jean Mermoz and Antoine de St Exupery, who in 1930 formed the first company to fly mail between South America and France. In those days it was a dangerous journey and the pilots needed a special kind of courage to make the trip. One of their new pilots, Henri Guillaumet flies the dangerous route between Santiago and Buenos Aires. During one trip, he crashes in the Andes during a fearsome storm. Later Exupery flies a rescue plane overhead, but is unable to see Henri, who decides to walk out on his own. Meanwhile, Henri's patient wife Noel and her beloved little dog anxiously hope that he will survive. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Adapted from Umberto Eco's best-selling novel, director Jean-Jacques Annaud's The Name of the Rose is a 14th century murder-mystery thriller starring Sean Connery as a Sherlock Holmes-esque Franciscan monk called William of Baskerville. When a murder occurs at a secluded Benedictine Abbey, William is called in to investigate. As he and his apprentice, Adson von Melk (Christian Slater), delve deeper and deeper into the case, more dead bodies begin to turn up. Eventually, Bernardo Gui, an inquisitor played by F. Murray Abraham gets involved, but he may not have the best intentions. Sean Connery's performance earned him the award for Best Actor at the 1988 British Academy Awards. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sean Connery, F. Murray Abraham, (more)
- 1985
In a standard story of brotherly conflict during the severity of detention in a German prison camp at the end of World War II, Robert (Claude Brasseur) has privileges that make him want to keep his status quo intact, while his brother Lucien (Daniel Auteuil) is anxious to escape and get back to the resistance movement. Robert is a pianist with enough talent that the Germans requisition him to entertain at a nearby hotel. His life is so close to normal that he even starts an affair with Hanna (Gudrun Landgrebe), the manager of the hotel. But when Lucien becomes hunted by the Germans as a POW who escaped his captors, Robert is forced to hide him in the prison camp. From that point onward, the brothers disagree on what to do next. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claude Brasseur, Daniel Auteuil, (more)
- 1983
In this routine romantic comedy, a veterinarian who mingles with humans of a higher pedigree gets an unwelcome visit from a female tax inspector -- and tries to seduce her as a way out of his dilemma. His screwball accountant's version of keeping books is no help, and so in desperation, the veterinarian performs a mock operation on the tax inspector's beloved pet dog in the hope of "saving the day" for himself in her eyes. Their continued interaction through thick and thin have changed the way the tax inspector and veterinarian regard each other, and disparate as they may be, an undeniable attraction starts to grow between them. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claude Brasseur, Josiane Balasko, (more)
- 1979
- R
Pierre Richard directs and stars in this comedy about a ghost writer employed by a successful comic. He assumes the comic's identity and talks his way into a joint venture with an Italian screen star. The two travel to Tunisia to work on their collaboration and experience romantic and professional comic mishaps. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pierre Richard, Aldo Maccione, (more)
- 1977
In this comedy, Pierre (Pierre Richard) is a timid cashier in a Parisian bank who has grown obsessed with getting to know a beautiful woman (Mimi Coutellier). Based on her stylishness, exquisite manner, and the places she frequents, he assumes she must be a movie star, a model, or an heiress. However, he can't even say "hello" without clamming up. None of the psychological treatments he has sought have been of any use to him. His therapist Aldo (Aldo Maccione) becomes his friend and volunteers to help him overcome his handicap. His increasingly frustrated friend drives around Paris with him, coaching him (unsuccessfully) at numerous potential encounter situations. Eventually he finds that the girl he has been following is named Agnes, and far from having come from a wealthy background, she was a clerk in a small shop who has been enjoying the proceeds from a prize. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pierre Richard, Aldo Maccione, (more)
- 1976
Christopher Lee dons the Count's legendary cape once again for this satirical French-made entry in the vampire genre (titled Dracula and Son for American release). It seems Dracula's son (Bernard Ménez) is a bit reluctant to carry on the family's blood-drinking tradition on account of severe squeamishness. This understandable rift is widened when the Dracula family is banished from Romania by the new communist regime, and they end up traveling their separate ways -- Ménez goes to France, while Lee, oddly enough, finds a lucrative career in British horror films (perish the thought!). They are reunited again at the premiere of one such film, where they meet and fall in love with the same woman). Directed by Edouard Molinaro, known best for his international comedy hit La Cage aux Folles, this was a very witty film prior to its decimation by an uncaring American distributor, who not only excised many of the jokes but also replaced them with horribly-written, sophomoric gags. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christopher Lee, Bernard Menez, (more)
