Michel Simon

  • Jean Renoir – Tire-au-flanc AKA The Sad Sack (1928)

    1921-1930ComedyFranceJean RenoirSilent

    A pretty rare early (and silent) Renoir, a kinda romantic-army-comedy about a fragile burgeoisie son who has (together with his his butler) to attend a full army drill. Several romantic interests soon kick in…Read More »

  • André Barsacq – Le rideau rouge AKA Crimson Curtain (1952)

    1951-1960André BarsacqCrimeDramaFrance

    Quote:
    Playwright Jean Anouilh was the guiding force behind the unorthodox murder mystery. During a provincial theatre production of Macbeth, several tragedies occur. The actors attribute these calamities to the “curse” supposedly hanging over the Shakespeare play, but police inspector Jean Brochard doesn’t buy this…Read More »

  • Maurice Lehmann & Claude Autant-Lara – Le ruisseau AKA The Stream (1938)

    1931-1940Claude Autant-LaraDramaFranceMaurice Lehmann

    Synopsis/Review:
    Denise, a young orphan girl who has escaped from a convent, believes that her misfortunes have ended when she meets Paul , a young naval officer upon whose ship she has stowed away. Paul, initially seeks to take advantage of her naivety to seduce her before changing his mind and sending her to live with his mother who works in a cabaret while he returns to sea. But the habits of the girl will push her to the brink of prostitution…Read More »

  • Julien Duvivier – Panique AKA Panic [2018 Restoration + Extras] (1946)

    1941-1950DramaFranceJulien DuvivierThriller

    Criterion wrote:
    Proud, eccentric, and antisocial, Monsieur Hire (Michel Simon) has always kept to himself. But after a woman turns up dead in the Paris suburb where he lives, he feels drawn to a pretty young newcomer to town (Viviane Romance), discovers that his neighbors are only too ready to suspect the worst of him, and is framed for the murder. Based on a novel by Georges Simenon, Julien Duvivier’s first film after his return to France from Hollywood finds the acclaimed poetic realist applying his consummate craft to darker, moodier ends. Propelled by its two deeply nuanced lead performances, the tensely noirish Panique exposes the dangers of the knives-out mob mentality, delivering as well a pointed allegory for the behavior of Duvivier’s countrymen during the war.Read More »

  • Sacha Guitry – Les 3 font la paire AKA Three Make a Pair (1957)

    France1951-1960ComedySacha Guitry

    Plot: Jojo’s ambition is to become a gangster, but to be admitted into a gang he has to prove himself by committing a daring act. To that end, he kills someone in broad daylight, not knowing that his victim is an actor who is playing a scene in a film directed by a cranky film-maker (Darry Cowl). The murder is caught on film, leading Commissaire Bernard (Michel Simon) to think that the killer will be easy to find. Sure enough, Bernard soon makes his arrest, a clown from a circus, but then he faces an almost insurmountable problem. The clown has an identical twin, who is also a clown with the same circus. Both men claim to be innocent… Read More »

  • Marcel Carné – Le Quai des brumes aka Port of Shadows [+Extras] (1938)

    1931-1940DramaFranceMarcel Carné

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    Synopsis
    Down a foggy, desolate road to the port city of Le Havre travels Jean (Jean Gabin), an army deserter looking for another chance to make good on life. Fate, however, has a different plan for him, as acts of both revenge and kindness render him front-page news. Also starring the blue-eyed phenomenon Michèle Morgan in her first major role, and the menacing Michel Simon, Port of Shadows (Le Quai des brumes) starkly portrays an underworld of lonely souls wrestling with their own destinies. Based on the novel by Pierre Mac Orlan, the inimitable team of director Marcel Carné and writer Jacques Prévert deliver a quintessential example of poetic realism and a classic film from the golden age of French cinema.Read More »

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