THE FRENCH HAD A NAME FOR IT 3

FURTHER EXPLORATIONS IN CLASSIC FRENCH NOIR, 1939-1965

THU—MON, NOV 3—7, 2016  ·  ROXIE THEATRE
Presented by Mid-Century Productions

THU, NOV 3, 2016
Origins: 1939

Daybreak

LE JOUR SE LEVE
DAYBREAK

(1939) 7:30

The Last Turn

LE DERNIER TOURNANT
THE LAST TURN

(1939) 9:20

FRI, NOV 4
Rehabilitations 1: Christian-Jaque

Journey without Hope

VOYAGE SANS ESPOIR
JOURNEY WITHOUT HOPE

(1943) 7:30

A Lover's Return

UN REVENANT
A LOVER'S RETURN

(1946) 9:20

SAT MATINÉE, NOV 5
HOSSEIN X 5
Two with Marie-France Pisier

Death of a Killer

LA MORT D'UN TUEUR
DEATH OF A KILLER

(1964) 1:30

The Secret Killer

LE VAMPIRE DE DÜSSELDORF
THE SECRET KILLER

(1965) 3:15

SAT EVENING, NOV 5
The Many (Deadpan) Moods of Robert Hossein…

The Road to Shame

DES FEMMES DISPARAISSENT
THE ROAD TO SHAME

(1959) 6:00

The Wretches

LES SCÉLÉRATS
THE WRETCHES

(1960) 7:45

The Game of Truth

LE JEU DE LA VÉRITÉ
THE GAME OF TRUTH

(1961) 9:30

SUN MATINÉE, NOV 6
1960s "Art-Noir" and the "Lost Boys" of the Nouvelle Vague

The Denunciation

LA DÉNONCIATION
THE DENUNCIATION

(1962) 1:30

Dark Journey

LÉVIATHAN
DARK JOURNEY

(1962) 3:30

SUN EVENING, NOV 6
Simone Signoret et un Monstre Sacré

Not Guilty

NON COUPABLE
NOT GUILTY

(1947) 7:00

The Cheat

MANÈGES
THE CHEAT

(1950) 9:00

MON, NOV 7
Rehabilitations 2: Jean Delannoy, "New Wave Whipping Boy"

Gambling Hell

MACAO, L'ENFER DE JEU
GAMBLING HELL

(1942) 7:15

The Chips Are Down

LES JEUX SONT FAITS
THE CHIPS ARE DOWN

(1947) 9:00

THURSDAY, NOV 3, 2016ORIGINS 1939

DAYBREAK / LE JOUR SE LEVE  7:30

Carné's 1939 masterpiece actually straddles poetic realism and the more hard-boiled film noir that coexisted in France in the 30s and would re-emerge in the USA at the end of World War II. Jean Gabin most fully embodies his proletarian persona here, literally trapped between competing impulses and desires, as Carné masterfully allegorizes the state of the French nation on the brink of war, and entering into a series of events that most certainly qualify as "noir." (Always a stickler for detail, Carné used four cinematographers to get the look he wanted.) With Jean Gabin, Arletty, Jules Berry, Jacqueline Laurent.

Dir. Marcel Carné (1939, 85 min.) Screenplay by Jacques Prévert from a story from Jacques Viot. Photographed by Philippe Agostini, André Bac, Curt Courant & Albert Viguier.

THE LAST TURN / LE DERNIER TOURNANT  9:20

Chenal, pioneer of hard-boiled noir, beats everyone to the punch and turns James M.Cain's novel into a sordid, earthy but oddly sensitive tale of the tragic triangle that ensues when a drifter (Gravey) is hired to work for a May-December couple (Simon, Luchaire) at a roadhouse. Lust and greed soon prevail, but Luchaire's depthless longing will stay with you long after the end. (Chenal would have to leave France a year after the release of LE DERNIER TOURNANT due to his Jewish heritage.) With Michel Simon, Fernand Gravey, Corinne Luchaire.

Dir. Pierre Chenal (1939, 90min.) Adaptation and dialogue by Charles Spaak and Henri Torrès from James M. Cain's novel The Postman Always Rings Twice. Photographed by Christian Matras.