Acting
Nineteenth-century Paris comes vibrantly alive in Jean Renoir’s exhilarating tale of the opening of the world-renowned Moulin Rouge. Jean Gabin plays the wily impresario Danglard, who makes the cancan all the rage while juggling the love of two beautiful women—an Egyptian belly-dancer and a naive working girl turned cancan star.
In Flanders in the eighteenth century, Ramon de Ortila, a young lord who has been dispossessed of property has turned into a gentleman brigand. His main target is Monsieur de Saint-Brissac, the salt tax farmer. But Solange, his daughter, sets a trap and lures the young man to her father's manor. Little does she know that love is at the rendezvous.
Three old friends meet again. They compare their marriages and tell each other stories which illustrate why they complain about their wives.
The scene is set during the Second Empire. Captain Bitterlin watches jealously over his lovely daughter Madeleine but he cannot prevent nature from demanding its rights and Madeleine soon finds herself a suitor in the person of Mario, a dashing young songwriter. Bitterlin, who wishes his daughter to "evade the grip" of the young man, takes her away to Monte Carlo. There, the captain does what he had sworn he would never do, he gambles in a casino. And even more upsetting: Mario might well be hereabouts...
When he finds a package in the metro, given this period of restrictions, Mr. Truche thinks it may be a good deal, he takes it home but discovers a woman's head inside. A friend of Mr. Truche having just disappeared, the superintendent accuses her of having murdered her and discovers the head buried in his cellar. But the girlfriend, whom Mr. Truche loves platonically, returns from the countryside and at the same time we spot the assassin of the unknown woman.
In this drama, a jilted bride and her little sister flee their hometown to search for better lives. They go to stay in their aunt's boarding house. There they meet a notorious philanderer and his mistress. The younger sister soon tries to lure him away from his love. Unfortunately, he falls for the older sister. As they make love, the poor little sister is left all alone.
Blondine, the daughter of a poor fisherman, marries the Prince of the Mountain. Brune, her sister, envies Blondine her happiness and tells her that a secret lies hidden in her husband's name. Blondine tries to discover it but, before she does, the Prince is imprisoned by an ogre. Blondine must face goblins, imps, and the water djinni before she can deliver her captive Prince.
An old gentleman, a direct descendant of Zorro, has a single son named Raimundo in whom there is no trace of proud pride.
1944, France experiences its last days of German occupation. A microcosm representative of the various attitudes adopted during this troubled period, some heroic, others less brilliant, the Grégeois family, scattered by the war, will strengthen its ties according to the Allied advance on the territory and the liberation of Paris, with its joys but also its sorrows, because not all of its members will survive the relative chaos that will characterize this end of the world war.
Gaston, nicknamed Pilou, has left his native village and Yvette, the girl of his heart, to go to Paris where he has found work as a painter. He is a naive good-natured man who, like most of his fellow-workers, favors a little song or two while he works. For the time being he is busy repainting the exterior of a block of flats and, when he does not sing to pass the time, he looks through the windows, observing the tenants in their daily lives. As time goes by, he goes as far as intervening and changing the course of their lives. In the end, despite having found a lookalike of his fiancée, he returns to her.
The orphan Catherine Maguet, nicknamed "La grande Maguet", was taken in by a young and good chatelaine, Suzanne de Norvaisis. Edmond, the husband of the latter, during a trip abroad, falls madly in love with another and will go, to conquer this one, to poison his wife. Imprisoned then released, the lord will finally marry the one for whom he has become a criminal. But the great Maguet will avenge her beloved murdered benefactress...
When Paul returns to claim his estranged father's department store, he faces a frosty stepmother and a rebellious half-sister. His determination revives the once-thriving Galeries Parisiennes, healing familial rifts, and leaving a lasting bond with wise Marie-Louise.
In a Provençal village, two jolly good fellows, Boule and Pons, decide to dress as Saint Anthony and Saint Nicholas for the distribution of presents to the children on the feast of Saint Nicholas. They unfortunately get killed by a cart and find themselves in Hell where Lucifer and his demons duly torment them. They are saved by a prayer which helps them to climb the stairway to Paradise. Saint Peter, taken in by the applicants' disguise, lets them in. When the two true Saints show up, trouble follows. Luckily, thanks to the intervention of the Virgin Mary, the two friends are acquitted at their celestial trial and allowed to return to Earth.
Hector Dumontier has had enough of his wife Noémie : she is always immersed in those detective stories he disapproves of. To teach her a lesson, Dumontier decides to simulate the burglary of their house, with the help of an alleged jewel thief masked by a hood. He creates many false leads and everybody in the house gets suspected, from Ernestine, the maid, to Cabassol, the chauffeur, to Rosine, the Dumontiers'daughter. The disorder is complete and the various police detectives in charge do not help much.
Fred Barker, an unmarried American who remained in France after heroically defending the country during the Second World War, runs the perfume factory in Grasse of his friend Carlo Ferelli, whose life he saved during the conflict. Fred has since adopted a little girl, Cathy. One day, he receives a visit from Félix Mercier, an old man who informs him that he has taken Cathy into his custody and that he will return her to him when Fred finds his granddaughter Hélène, a 17-year-old teenager who accuses the factory of being a front for white slavery. Fred, dumbfounded, sets out to find Hélène, so he can quickly get Cathy back.
Honoré, a valet, has an extremely logical mind and is unable to tell a lie. This comes in very fortunate for the family he works for.
In this French crime drama, a young man gets revenge upon the criminals who caused his grandfather to kill himself. Unfortunately, the fellow doesn't realize how bad the criminals are. Fortunately, a kindly hooker, who does know the crooks, saves him from the same fate.
Mandrin, the French army deserter, becomes the leader of a gang of smugglers in Piedmont. He is loved by the beautiful innkeeper Rosetta but draws attention to the Marquise de Montbricourt, favorite of the king, who comes from Versailles just to see him. She will saved his life and allow him to marry Rosetta.
Régine was married to Léon. She is currently engaged to Daniel, but still has feelings for Maurice. Young Georgette would like to find me a sister at any price, but her friend Magali would only commit herself for the right reason. Ferdinand is Léon's diligent valet. They all meet up at a winter sports resort. During a wild night, we witness the figures of a most successful quadrille.
Chatelard, one of Viscount de Kerlec's guests, has died in mysterious conditions. The police initiates an investigation and sends detective-inspector Pauc to de Kerlec's manor. Pauc decides to mingle with the viscount's guests , who are all likely to have committed the murder. Among them, there is Jacques Mauclerc, a naval officer, and a seedy character named Bartoli, in fact a spy in search of secret documents. Pauc will end up untangling the web during a dramatic séance.
