Robert Hossein Movies

A suicidal police detective travels from La Havre to Deauville at the behest of a mysterious femme fatale in the suspenseful sophomore feature from actress-turned-director Sophie Marceau. For Lt. Jacques Renard (Christopher Lambert), every night is a struggle. Rendered sleepless following the untimely death of his beloved wife, Lt. Renard finds his curiosity taking over after he is approached by an enigmatic beauty (Marceau) and implored to visit room 401 of the extravagant Hotel Riviera. Upon arriving at the hotel Lt. Renard discovers that Antoine Berangere (Robert Hossein), who has been the director of the establishment at the Riviera for nearly four decades, vanished forty-eight hours ago under suspicious circumstances. In his father's absence, Antoine's thirty-nine year old son Camille (Nicolas Briancon) has assumed control of the hotel. While Camille insists that the Hotel Riviera has no room 401, the suspicious actions of Antoine's wheelchair-bound second wife (Marie-Christine Barrault) leads Lt. Renard to suspect that foul play is afoot. Shortly after Lt. Renard discovers that Camille's famous mother Victoria (again Marceau) died precisely thirty-six years ago, a mangled body presumed to be that of Antoine Berangere turns up in the city morgue. While his loyal partner Pierre (Simon Abkarian) is convinced that this is an open and shut case, Lt. Renard himself discovers a series of well-concealed clues that lead him to believe that something far more sinister is afoot. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

In the grand tradition of Britain's Hammer low-budget horror films of the '60s, this Gothic and gory chiller is the third screen version of Gaston Leroux's tale The Wax Museum. The prologue is set in turn-of-the-century Paris at New Years. Just as the bells ring out, a young sleeping couple are attacked by a hooded figure whose hand has been replaced by a fearsome steel claw. Their gruesome deaths are witnessed by their unseen little girl. The story moves ahead 12 years and moves to a Roman brothel where Lucas, a young patron, accepts a bet to spend an entire evening in a particular wax museum filled with gruesome reenactments of the world's most horrible crimes. Though he knows the figures are only wax, they literally horrify Lucas to the point of death. The official cause is listed as heart failure, a fact that attracts considerable attention from the press causing the curator, Boris, to devise a new set of grim tableaux. His latest creations are chillingly real, mostly because they are real but for the special chemical Boris injects into them. The curator's diabolical schemes unravel shortly after he hires Sonia, the little girl from the prologue, as his new costumer. The museum exhibits bring her childhood trauma flooding back to the surface. Fortunately, her lover, an ingenious reporter has teamed up with a determined police inspector who has been investigating her parents' murder for the past 12 years. The film is dedicated to Lucio Fulci, one of Italy's premiere masters of schlock horror who died during production in March, 1996. He was replaced by first-time director Sergio Stivaletti. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

In this comedy, young Moses Levy is a Hassidic Jew who lives a quiet existence, avoiding entanglement with the modern world. However, his job requires that he travel between the diamond capital of Antwerp to Paris to deliver diamond powder to an auto assembly plant. Without his knowledge, a gang of cocaine smugglers stashed some of their similar-looking wares amid his own, so as to make it past customs. When they begin taking drastic actions in order to get their stash back, Moses is forced to call on his worldly brother Albert -- a man who has left the faith -- in order to stay alive. Along the way, he almost becomes romantically entangled with a Muslim girl and has encounters with an undercover cop in drag at a club featuring transvestite performers. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

In a complicated spy thriller that never quite shifts out of neutral, Alex (Robert Hossein) and Nora (Candice Patou) are ex-lovers and spies who work for the USSR. Several years after their affair ended, they are back together, called to work in Geneva by the Swiss bureau chief because an Egyptian who had been Nora's earlier recruit has been murdered. The bureau chief suspects one of the pair is the killer, but then several surprises are in store for Nora and Alex before the final, tragic ending closes the case. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

This screen version of Victor Hugo's classic novel stars Italian actor Lino Ventura as Jean Valjean, a French peasant who -- driven to desperation by poverty -- steals a loaf of bread only to be caught by the police. After serving a long prison term for this petty theft, Valjean is tempted to return to a life of crime upon his release, but an act of mercy by a kindly Bishop gives him a fresh start. Valjean gains a new determination to build a better life for himself, and in time he becomes a respected citizen, a successful businessman, and the mayor of a small town. However, Javert (Michel Bouquet), who was once a guard at the prison where Valjean was held, is now a police captain and knows the truth about the criminal history Valjean prefers not to discuss. Javert is convinced that Valjean is not as honest as he seems, and he obsessively pursues him, determined to one day put him back behind bars. This was the 16th screen adaptation of Les Miserables, and the 11th to be produced since the introduction of sound. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Claude Lelouch's Bolero covers a time span of half a century, concentrating on several generations of music lovers, all hailing from different nations and cultural backgrounds. Each of the principal actors plays multiple characters. Among the cast-members is James Caan, Robert Hossein and Geraldine Chaplin. The film's original title was Les Uns et les autres. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this French spy thriller, a policeman with wide-ranging powers to protect an African dictator who is visiting France -- to negotiate a uranium-mining treaty -- reveals an unexpected degree of skillfulness in doing his job when he is challenged by the actions of spies from other countries and the obstinacy of the dictator himself. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

This French melodrama tells the tragic story of a young priest (Robert Hossein) who falls in love with a young woman, has relations with her, and gets her pregnant. His cardinal wants to ship him off to Rome, but he sticks around and has a hard time of it when she dies and he is not allowed to keep their baby. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

This French suspense drama concerns the efforts of a small-time criminal (Robert Hossein) to spring his older brother from jail. The younger man and his friends kidnap a non-descript detective to serve as a hostage they can exchange for the brother. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

A British soldier and his German counterpart are equally affected by the heat of a North African desert during a battle. ~ Rovi