Daniel Ivernel Movies

Francois (Jean-Paul Belmondo) was framed as a drug-trafficker by none other than the head trafficker himself and spent seven years in prison for his supposed crimes. Now an ex-con, the vengeful Francois carefully arranges things so that the kingpin's own henchmen murder him, as they believe that they are also about to fall victim to the mobster's ruthless schemes. Flashbacks show that Francois had a rewarding, though tumultuous life before his imprisonment. Now he has a new girlfriend, and a new life, in this movie based on a book by Marceau. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

The 1970 French crime flick Borsalino featured Alain Delon and Jean-Paul Belmondo as charismatic gangsters in 1930s Marseilles. Belmondo was killed off in that film, but Delon survived to show up in the 1974 sequel Borsalino and Co. (actually filmed just after the original, but not released for several years). Seeking redress for the death of his partner, Roch (Delon) disposes of his enemies in a variety of novel (and gruesome) methods. Both Borsalino and Co. and its predecessor were inspired by Eugene Saccomano's novel The Bandits of Marseilles. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In 1950s France, an old peasant patriarch was tried for the murder of a family of British campers. At the time, the case was a cause célèbre all over France. This movie made the old case famous all over again. At the time of his capture, Dominici (Jean Gabin) was adamant that he committed the crime. During the trial, however, he retracted his confession and gave evidence that pointed to his two sons and another person. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

L'Attentat is a political thriller based largely on a true story (the Ben Barka affair), which recounts how the French government and the American CIA connived to have a socialist in exile murdered before he could return to his homeland and start a revolution. Darien, a French journalist (Jean-Louis Tritignant), lures his friend Sadiel (Gian Maria Volonte) from his safe refuge in Geneva to appear on an American-made TV show. In doing so he is, perhaps unwittingly, setting him up for murder. Captured at the border by the French police, Sadiel is given over to a mysterious general from another country who tortures him to try to find out who his supporters are. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

In this French crime thriller, you can leave the mob, but the mob won't leave you. Louis (Jean Yanne) has retired to a Thailand plantation with an Asian wife and child. Back in Marseilles, however, because a no-holds-barred gang war has broken out, Louis' large collateral family is wiped out, and he is family are slated for destruction. Hit-men are sent, and they kill his wife, but fail to get Louis. Now incensed, he returns to Marseilles to set these people straight. They confuse him with a policeman (Sterling Hayden) who is escorting Louis' daughter to Paris, and though they kill his daughter, Louis is able to get through the airport and into town. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

A gang of crooks invades a small town in this unusual crime drama. After taking over the police station and the post office, they systematically rob all the banks and factory payrolls. The caper seems to have been motivated by a jilted husband whose wife ran off with a factory manager who absconded with the company funds. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

In this charming drama, a department store clerk takes his wife and kids on a Parisian vacation. One day he is out sightseeing by himself when he encounters a fashion model and offers to give her a guided tour. As they amble about, the romantic city casts its spell and the model falls in love with her guide (who has been pretending to be an artist). Finally things come to a passionate head, and the fellow must decide between a fling and his family. He chooses the latter. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

The second screen version of Octave Mirbeau's novel (originally filmed in 1946 by Jean Renoir), Diary of a Chambermaid charts the ambitions of Celestine (Jeanne Moreau), a woman who comes to work in the 1930s for a Normandy estate occupied by Monsieur Rabour (Jean Ozenne), his daughter (Francoise Lugagne), and the daughter's husband, Monsieur Montiel (Michel Piccoli). Celestine quickly learns that M. Rabour is a more or less harmless boot fetishist, his daughter a frigid woman more concerned with the family furnishings than in returning the affections of her husband, who, in turn, can't keep his hands off the servants. The gamekeeper, Joseph (Georges Geret), is a fascist who keeps his masters informed of all the doings downstairs, and the next-door neighbor (Daniel Ivernel) is a veteran who can't stand Monteil and is sharing a bed with his housekeeper. Celestine picks her way through this minefield carefully, spurning the advances of all of the men until it's convenient for her. ~ Tom Wiener, Rovi

Sundays and Cybele (original French title: Les Dimanches de Ville D'Avray) stars Hardy Kruger as a former bomber pilot. Emotionally shattered by a tragic wartime incident, Kruger goes into semi-seclusion in a small Parisian suburb. He is drawn out of his shell by 12-year-old orphan girl Patricia Gozzi. The nuns in charge of Patricia bless the relationship, assuming that Kruger is the girl's father. A warm, chaste friendship develops between the older man and the bright-eyed girl, culminating in their mutual decision to spend Christmas together in a nearby woods. Unfortunately, nurse Nicole Courcel, suspecting that Kruger is a pedophile, calls the police--a move that can only result in disaster for all concerned. Based on a novel by Bernard Eschasseriaux, the exquisitely photographed Sundays and Cybele won the 1962 Best Foreign Film Academy Award. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Brigitte Bardot was only twenty-four when she was featured in this typical sexual drama yet she was already a star on the international film scene. In this story she is Eva, a perfect blonde who has all the men in Seville, Spain chasing after her, though she is not interested in any of them. Even when the wealthy Don Mateo (Antonio Vilar) falls hard for her charms, he cannot turn her head in his direction. He gives up everything for her and then finds that persistence and a few rough times pay off in the end as the imperious blond begins to reconsider her attitude -- slightly. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

This upteenth film version of the life of royal courtesan Madame Du Barry stars Martine Carol in the title role. Starting out as an ambitious shopgirl, our heroine catches the eye of the even more ambitious Count du Barry (Daniel Ivernei), who in turn brings the girl to the attention of King Louis XV (Andre Luguet). Enchanted by her beauty and forthrightness, Louis takes Mme. Du Barry as his mistress, indulging her every whim. Banished from the court of Versailles by Marie Antoinette, Du Barry ultimately falls victim to the French Revolution, but she has fun while she lasts. Director Christian-Jaque wittily frames his story in the form of a magic-lantern show. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi