
Jules Berry
Acting
Biography
Jules Berry (born Marie Louis Jules Paufichet; 9 February 1883 – 23 April 1951) was a French actor. Berry and his two brothers were born to parents who sold hardware and settled in Poitou. The family moved to Paris in 1888. Berry completed his studies at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand and then graduated from École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts. It was during his studies that Berry developed an interest in the theater. Following an audition, he was hired by the Théâtre Antoine-Simone Berriau to act in La Mort du duc d'Enghien by Léon Hennique, and Le Perroquet vert by Arthur Schnitzler. Later he performed at the Théâtre de l'Ambigu-Comique and the Théâtre de l'Athénée. During a tour in Lyon, he was noticed by Jean-François Ponson, who hired him for a period of 12 years at the Théâtre royal des Galeries Saint-Hubert in Brussels. Audiences in Brussels gave him a warm welcome, where he played in productions such as Le Mariage de mademoiselle Beulemans. Berry subsequently performed in 30 successful plays for Marcel Achard, Alfred Savoir, Louis Verneuil, and Roger Ferdinand. One of Berry's first movie roles was the silent film Oliver Cromwell (1911) directed by Henri Desfontaines. His first appearance in a talking picture was Mon coeur et ses millions (1931) with Suzy Prim. Over the course of his career, Berry acted in 89 motion pictures. Bombastic, extravagant, and whimsical, Berry was as flamboyant as any entertainer of the period, including Pierre Brasseur. Berry is often considered one of the greatest actors in the history of French cinema. Among Berry's best films are: The Crime of Monsieur Lange by Jean Renoir, Les Visiteurs du Soir by Marcel Carné, Le Jour Se Lève by Marcel Carné, Strange Inheritance by Louis Daquin, Baccara by Yves Mirande, 27 Rue de la Paix by Richard Pottier and L'Habit vert by Roger Richebé. Berry ended his film career in 1951 to interpret the texts of Jacques Prévert. Berry was romantically involved with actresses Jane Marken, Suzy Prim, and Josseline Gaël. He and Gaël had a daughter named Michelle in 1939. A compulsive gambler, Berry frequented casinos and horse races. In April 1951, Berry was admitted to the Hôpital Broussais, where he died of a heart attack caused by treatment for rheumatism. He is buried in the Père Lachaise Cemetery (division 80). Source: Article "Jules Berry" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.
Known For
Produced for television by Claude-Jean Philippe, the « Encyclopédie audiovisuelle du cinéma », recounts the history of French cinema from its birth to the beginning of the 1960s. With commentary read by Jean Rochefort.
Encyclopédie audiovisuelle du cinéma

At the end of the 15th century, a man and a woman, posing as traveling minstrels, are sent by the Devil to a castle to seduce its inhabitants.
The Devil's Envoys

Adapted from the novel L'Argent by Émile Zola, the film portrays the world of banking and the stock market in Paris in the 1920s.
L'Argent

Mild-mannered novelist of Western fiction, Amédée Lange, and his colleagues take over a publishing house after their exploitative boss disappears, only for the superior to return and try to reclaim the profits from their successful cooperative.
The Crime of Monsieur Lange

After committing a murder, a man locks himself in his apartment and recollects the events that led him to the killing.
Daybreak

In Le Livre d’Image, Jean-Luc Godard recycles existing images (films, documentaries, paintings, television archives, etc.), quotes excerpts from books, uses fragments of music. The driving force is poetic rhyme, the association or opposition of ideas, the aesthetic spark through editing, the keystone. The author performs the work of a sculptor. The hand, for this, is essential. He praises it at the start. “There are the five fingers. The five senses. The five parts of the world (…). The true condition of man is to think with his hands. Jean-Luc Godard composes a dazzling syncopation of sequences, the surge of which evokes the violence of the flows of our contemporary screens, taken to a level of incandescence rarely achieved. Crowned at Cannes, the last Godard is a shock film, with twilight beauty.
The Image Book

A group of policemen look over three murder cases including a cutthroat that prays on young women, a madman that hid his deformed landlord's corpse in the floor, and a wine aficionado who buries his friend alive.
Unusual Tales

A rich banker is actually a crook. His mistress, an alien, wants to become French and the only way is to marry a Frenchman.
Baccara

Having pulled off a robbery with his friend Maurice, Olivier leaves his mistress Lola and hides out in a small village in the country. He finds work, thanks to a young man named Gilbert, who introduces him to his sister, Monique. Once the robbery has been all but forgotten, Olivier intends to head back to Paris, but before he goes, he steals money from his employer. In Paris, Olivier wants to say a proper goodbye to Lola, but she is being blackmailed by Jérôme, an antique dealer who has recognized a necklace stolen by Olivier. Before returning to Monique, Olivier calls on Jérôme to recover the necklace.
L'assassin a peur la nuit

The novelist Loïc Limousin knew the turbulent past of Marie-Martine and he extracted the material for a novel from which the young girl risks paying the price. After the drama that had thrown her in prison, she met a brave boy ready to make his life with her. Will the scandal separate them?
Marie-Martine

A famous violinist enlists in a music school in order to woo one of the students.
Final Accord

The forbidden romance between wealthy Giselle Preville and impoverished journalist Claude Dauphin. When Preville disappears, Dauphin is accused of kidnapping by the girl's snobbish father Rene Alexander. By the time the Normandie reaches New York, however, the "mystery" is solved and all misunderstandings blithely swept away.
Paris - New-York

In the elevator of two large Parisian buildings, a telegraph operator discovers the body of an elderly woman, Madame Mathieu, the owner of both buildings. Boucheron, the local superintendent, is dispatched to investigate, along with his rival, Inspector Lambert of the "Sûreté". To solve the enigma, they scour staircases and corridors, visiting every floor of both buildings, courtyard and facade. Their gruff rivalry allows them to complement each other in discovering who committed the crime among a gallery of characters, humble or rich, who all have something to be ashamed of... A rare, fast-paced, picturesque comedy set against the backdrop of a police mystery.
Behind the Facade

The film is biographical, telling the story of the life and artistic struggles of the French composer Hector Berlioz. Berlioz is shown as a recalcitrant medical student in an anatomy class dreaming of becoming a composer; at a demonstration during a performance at the Paris Opéra conducted by Habeneck; at supper with other young artists (Hugo, Janin, Dumas, Mérimée, Delacroix); and chasing after his future wife Harriet Smithson, after a performance of Hamlet. Also depicted are his life in a garret, while suffering from an illness due to an abscess in the throat; a visit from his mother who curses him; and the composition of the Symphonie fantastique. The film then shows his marital breakdown, the premiere of his opera Benvenuto Cellini, his travels throughout Europe, his second marriage to Marie Recio (called "Marie Martin" in the film), public acceptance in old age and reconciliation with his son.
La Symphonie fantastique

Seduced by count Diego and then abandoned, Adriana finds a job at a large hairdresser shop, so she can lead a dignified life together with her daughter.
I'll Love You Forever

An aspiring singer tries to break into films during the early talkie era. She is hired to dub the singing and speaking voice of a silent-movie favorite. Sworn to secrecy, the fill-in must stand by in silence as the star receives all the praises and plaudits.
Star Without Light

Two journalists from different papers are looking for the same story. They want to know, who a group of gangsters getting young women from Europe to South America, where they are forced to work in brothels. But the gangsters have their own battels against each over, so the journalists can escape the danger, in which they've brought themselves.
French White Cargo

Captain Palmer's daughter, Maria, is neglected by her husband, the cynical Leo, who lives with the beautiful Sylvia. To defeat his son-in-law, Palmer has the idea of putting Sylvia back in the presence of Pierre, her first love. Leo takes revenge by creating many difficulties for Palmer who retaliates by starting a violent fight where Leo is killed. Everything seems to point to Pierre, but...
The Crowned Fish Tavern

Franck Crighton is a millionaire who is fed up with his hectic life. To have a bit of peace and quiet he has found the winning formula, passing himself off as Guillaume Aribeau, his own secretary. Under the cover of this modest condition Franck can both lead a freewheeling life and find true love.
My Heart and Its Millions

Arsène Lupin decides to run a detective agency in addition to being a gentleman thief. As a detective he happens to cooperate with police in order to unveil the criminal activities of a villain. When he succeeds the villain returns the favour. The unmasked Arsène Lupin manages to escape with the villain's gangster moll as his new companion.