Maurice Ronet Movies

After a string of hits that included Planet of the Apes (1968), Patton (1970), Papillon (1973), and The Boys from Brazil (1978), director Franklin J. Schaffner stumbled badly with this expensive wannabe cousin to Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). Based on a novel by author Robin Cook, this romance-adventure stars Lesley-Anne Down as Erica Baron, a female archaeologist who is searching for a lost Egyptian tomb, hoping that she will be responsible for the next discovery along the lines of King Tut's Tomb. Erica witnesses the murder of a native, Abdu Hamdi (John Gielgud doing his best Alec Guinness impersonation) and when she attempts to solve the crime, she becomes the target of a campaign to kill her using a variety of creative methods, including bats and entombment. In the course of her adventures, Erica also falls in love with a handsome Egyptologist, Ahmed Khazzan (Frank Langella). Sphinx (1981) was a box office disaster from which Schaffner never recovered, directing only three more pictures. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

Bloodline, a thriller based on a mystery novel by Sidney Sheldon and directed by Terence Young, is the story of Elizabeth Roffe (Audrey Hepburn), who inherits a huge pharmaceutical company and then discovers that some of her family members may be plotting her death in order to gain control of the company. Despite an all-star cast including the usually excellent James Mason, Irene Papas, Ben Gazzara, the lovely Romy Schneider and Omar Sharif and wonderful locations, this thriller just doesn't generate much suspense despite numerous likely suspects and plot twists. Director Young gets only an average performance from Audrey Hepburn and manages to do little with his distinguished cast. The film while not particularly suspenseful is aided by the lovely color photography of Freddie Young and a lively, original score by Ennio Morricone. ~ Linda Rasmussen, Rovi

Xavier Marechal (Alain Delon) is a businessman whose long-time business partner and friend is Philippe Dubaye (Maurice Ronet) a member of the French parliamentary assembly. In the film, Philippe has just killed Cerrano, a fellow assemblyman who threatened to disclose Philippe's involvement in political corruption. After killing the man, he steals his notebook which contains blackmail information implicating many members of the government. Philippe comes to Xavier afterward for help but only has time to tell him where the notebook is hidden before he is killed. Xavier and Philippe's girlfriend Valerie (Ornella Muti) become the objects of a manhunt by the worried politicians and their henchmen. Mort d'Un Pourri was basically an Alain Delon project; he funded the production of this action thriller, lent his name to it, and invited well-known action- and comedy-director Georges Lautner to direct it. This virtually guaranteed enough money for a polished production, with an all-star cast. Alain Delon here remains faithful to his image as a lone wolf, proud warrior and "samurai" devoted to friendship. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

The title character in The French Woman is essayed by Francoise Fabian. Officially, Fabian is Madame Claude, the owner of a Parisian modelling agency. It is an open secret, however, that her operation actually traffics in expensive call girls. Director Just Jaeckin treats the material with the same erotic aplomb he brought to his earlier Emmanuelle films. The French Woman is liberally based on the memoirs of one Madame Claude. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this dreamlike and erotic picture, a middle-aged couple have invited a number of people to dinner. As the dinner proceeds, accompanied by liturgical music, the meal is transformed into an erotic fantasy as the guests make love to one another; the wife has an incestuous union while her husband and their daughter look on, and then the wife and another woman do some extraordinary things with and to the husband. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Set in the City of Light, this crime melodrama chronicles the attempts of a US drug agent to stop a major drug-lord. Though the agent realizes his three predecessors have been assassinated, and that the French government doesn't necessarily approve of the Yank's harassment of a French citizen, he is determined to succeed. Then a Parisian cop quietly suggests that Anthony Quinn himself hire an assassin to kill the drug lord. He thinks about it long and hard, before agreeing to it. Later he is shocked to learn that the assassin is an old war buddy. The hit man then works overtime to cozy up to the criminal and earn his trust. While he is doing that, the agent learns that events have changed and he must capture the drug lord alive. Unfortunately, he must first find a way to call off the professional killer before it is too late. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

In this Belgian/French romance, based on the novel by Françoise Mallet-Joris, Tamara (Françoise Brion), a sex-hungry and ambitious woman "on the make," trifles with the affections of Lena (Sharon Gurney), in order to gain affection with Lena's wealthy father. When Tamara and the father are wed, Lena cultivates her wounded feelings and wants vengeance. Though now married, Tamara is unable to pummel her own lustful tendencies, and when the dashing, but rakish, Parisian director Gerfaud newly arrives in town, she sets her sights on him. Lena, seizing the opportunity for sweet revenge, gets to him first, and he whisks her away to the deluxe "Red Room" of a local brothel. However, getting a man into bed and enjoying it are two different things: Lena tells the man to desist and is raped for her pains. She succeeds in making Tamara furious, however, and the two women fight all the way back into each others arms. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

In this French crime/action feature, Maury (Maurice Ronet) has been booted out of the police force for failing to understand which side of the toast his butter is on: he pursued the prosecution of an important police official's son who was involved in the drug trade. Even more important people in politics have their own private armies of mercenary soldiers, and when Maury is seen by them to be one of their sort, he goes along. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

A tabloid newspaper reporter becomes confused with guilt after one of his stories causes the death of an innocent man, and he must think of a way to make up for his sin in this drama. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi