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Quai des Orfvres
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Wikipedia article
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'Quai des Orfvres' (; "Goldsmiths' Quay"; also known as 'Jenny Lamour') is a 1947 French police procedural drama film based on the book 'Lgitime dfense' by Stanislas-Andre Steeman. Directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot the film stars Suzy Delair as Jenny Lamour, Bernard Blier as Maurice Martineau, Louis Jouvet as Inspector Antoine and Simone Renant as Dora.
The film was Clouzot's third directorial effort, and the first after the controversy of 'Le corbeau'. Without having the novel on hand, Clouzot and Jean Ferry based the film on memory and deviated significantly from the original story. The film was released in France and was popular with both audiences and critics. On the film's re-release in the United States in 2002, it continued to receive praise from critics as one of the director's best films.
Plot
Paris, December 1946. Jenny Lamour (Delair) wants to succeed in the theatre. Her husband and accompanist is Maurice Martineau (Blier), a mild-mannered but jealous man. When he finds out that Jenny has been making eyes at Brignon, a lecherous old businessman, in order to further her career, he loses his temper and threatens Brignon with death. Despite this, Jenny goes to a secret rendezvous at Brignon's apartment. He is murdered the same evening. The criminal investigations are led by Inspector Antoine (Jouvet).
Production
'Quai des Orfvres' was directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot and was his first film in four years. Clouzot had been banned from film making after the controversy after the release 'Le corbeau' and due to Clouzot's collaboration with the German-owned company Continental Films. During Clouzot's inactivity, he wrote scripts for films that were never released. He met with producer Anatole Eliacheff who offered to financially back Clouzot's next film provided that it would be a commercial film. Clouzot suggested the Belgian murder mystery 'Lgitime dfense' by Stanislas-Andr Steeman which he had read during the Occupation. This production was meant to be a commission to end Clouzot's four years of enforced inactivity and take advantage of the new popular style of crime literature. Clouzot had previously written screenplays based on Steeman's work including Georges Lacombe's 'Le Dernier des six' (1943) and his own debut, 'L'Assassin habite au 21' (1942). Eliacheff agreed and shortly after sold the rights to another producer, Roger de Venloo.
When trying to find a copy of 'Lgitime dfense' to re-read, Clouzot found that it was out of print. Clouzot wrote a letter to Steeman to obtain a copy and began to adapt the story from memory with writer Jean Ferry. By the time a copy of the book arrived, Clouzot and Ferry had already written the script which deviated greatly from Steeman's novel. The changes in the script include the identity of the real murderer, the settings of the action, and the introduction of the lesbian photographer character Dora Monier.Mayne 2007, p.88
'Quai des Orfvres' was also a comeback film for director-actor Louis Jouvet with whom Clouzot had become good friends before World War II. Jouvet accepted the part of Inspector Antoine on the condition that a flexible shooting schedule would be allowed and that Clouzot would cast some of Jouvet's troupe members in the film. Clouzot agreed and cast Leo Lapara as one of Antoine's colleagues and Fernand Ren as the music hall director. Clouzot cast Charles Dullin as Brignon, the murder victim. It would be the last film appearance for Dullin, who died in 1949. The main female lead was written for Suzy Delair who was Clouzot's romantic partner at the time of filming. The film went into production on 3 February 1947 and finished filming on 10 May.
Cast
* Suzy Delair as Marguerite Chauffournier, alias Jenny Lamour
* Bernard Blier as Maurice Martineau
* Louis Jouvet as Inspector Antoine
* Simone Renant as Dora Monnier
* Pierre Larquey as Emile Lafour
* Jeanne Fusier-Gir as Pquerette
* Claudine Dupuis as Manon
* Charles Dullin as Brignon
* Henri Arius as Lopardi
* Jacques Grtillat as Auguste
Release and reception
'Quai des Orfvres' was released on 3 October 1947 in Paris. In 1947, it was the fourth most popular film in France, drawing 5.5 million spectators.Lloyd 2007, p. 30 The film has had several theatrical revivals in France since its original release. The film was released in New York City in March 1948 under the title 'Jenny Lamour'. 'Quai des orfvres' was re-released for a limited run within America on 25 October 2002.
Critical reception
The film received positive reception from critics on its initial release in France. Pierre Chartier of 'France-Libre' wrote that the film was "a watershed in the history of the French crime film." Jean Desternes of 'Combat' praised the director Clouzot, referring to him as "not just a film director. He's a creative artist who sticks to his initial idea, works it out in shots, words, actions." Franois Chalais wrote a positive review in 'Carrefour', stating the film "commands the keenest admiration at any given moment, the dialogue of the film is the work of a truly great and extremely subtle dramatist. That's one of M. Clouzot's most remarkable traits: he knows how to write." At the 1947 Venice International Film Festival, Clouzot won the International Prize for Best Director for the film.Crisp, 1997. p 427 The film received positive critical reception in the United States on its initial release. Bosley Crowther of 'The New York Times' referred to the film as "a fascinating and penetrating film". Richard L. Coe of 'The Washington Post' referred to the film as "a fine, engrossing French crime film". 'Variety' gave the film a positive review, proclaiming that "In every respect ['Quai des Orfvres'] is outstanding." In 1949, the film won an Edgar Award for Best Foreign film.Modern reception of the film has also been positive. French critics have continued to praise the film since its release. In 1964 Jean Mitry wrote that the film is "one of the few filmswith Renoir's 'Rules of the Game', 'All About Eve', and two or three otherswhich allows us to think that the cinema, like the novel and the theater, can some day be an instrument for exploring the human soul." In 1986, Michel Perez wrote a review for 'Le Matin de Paris' stating that 'Quai des Orfvres' "was nothing less than the most powerful, best constructed, best written, best directed and most telling film about society of its day." In 1995, a critics poll in the French film magazine 'Positif' placed 'Quai des Orfvres' as the second greatest French thriller of all time.Lloyd 2007, p. 63 The film ranking website Rotten Tomatoes reports a 100% approval rating, based on 32 reviews, with a weighted average of 8.34/10. The site's consensus reads: "Henri Georges-Clouzot's engrossing noir explores the troubles of post-war France and the line dividing social struggle and criminality". At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average score of 89, based on 10 reviews.
Home media
'Quai des Orfvres' was released in North America on DVD by The Criterion Collection on 27 May 2003. In the United Kingdom, a DVD was released on 30 April 2007 by Optimum Releasing. The Criterion DVD is now out of print. Kino Lorber has released a 4K restoration of the film with supplements on Blu-ray and DVD.References
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