René Clair

11.11.1898, Paris, France - 15.03.1981, Paris, France

 

Director

As a young man he wrote poetry. He was wounded in the First World War and worked as a journalist and actor. He is a classic of a French cinematography. Even though he was close to the avant-garde and pure movies at the beginning of his film career and later to the poetic realism (light motive of life as a social game is in Les Grandes manoeuvres (1955) is similar to the one in
Jean Renoir’s La regle du jeu (1939), Rene Clair was always recognisable by his own attitudes, refined irony, and nostalgic remembrance of childhood. He made his films in Great Britain and the United States. He collaborated on three films with Gerard Philipe, along with Jean Gabin, the most famous French actor
at the time.

Filmography

Les fętes galantes (1965)
Les quatre vérités (1962, omnibus, segment "Les deux pigeons")
Tout l'or du monde (1961)
La française et l'amour (1960, omnibus, dio "Le Mariage")
Porte des Lilas (1957)
Les grandes manoeuvres (1955)
Les belles de nuit (1952)
La beauté du diable (1950)
Le silence est d'or (1847)
And Then There Were None (1945)
It Happened Tomorrow (1944)
Forever and a Day (omnibus, dio "1897")
I Married a Witch (1944)
The Flame of New Orleans (1941)
Break the News (1938)
The Ghost Goes West (1935)
Le dernier milliardaire (1934)
Quatorze Juillet (1933)
A nous la liberté (1931)
Le million (1931)
Sous les toits de Paris (1930)
La tour (1928)
Les deux timides (1928)
Un chapeau de paille d'Italie (1927)
La proie du vent (1926)
Le fantôme du Moulin-Rouge
Le voyage imaginaire (1925)
Paris qui dort (1924)
Entr'acte (1924)


Related texts

Unusual French movies from the half of the fifties

Films by this director

The great manoeuvres

(Les grandes manoeuvres, 1955)

Directed by: René Clair
PHOTOGRAPHY: Robert Lefebvre
Synopsis:

The great manoeuvres referred to, which occur in the atmosphere of the First World War, are not military ones but rather love ones. Armand, a lover with a bad reputation, bets against other soldiers that he will seduce the beautiful Marie-Louise. Soon his reputation is at stake, and one rival, out of sheer jealousy, reveals the secret of the bet.

color, 106 min

The Beauty of the Devil

(La beauté du diable, 1950.)

Directed by: René Clair
PHOTOGRAPHY: Michel Kelber
Synopsis:

Sveučilišni profesor i alkemičar Henri Faust odlazi u mirovinu razočaran što nakon pedeset godina rada i dalje nije otkrio tajne prirode. Jedne večeri posjećuje ga Mefistofeles, vražji sluga koji mu nudi priliku da ponovno proživi svoj život. Iako se nećka oko dobivene ponude, nađe se u tijelu mladića. Pokušavajući ga pridobiti da potpiše ugovor s vragom i odrekne se svoje duše, Mefistofeles mu obeća bogatstvo, slavu i ljubav princeze.

digital, b/w, 96 min

The Lace Wars

(Les fêtes galantes, France, 1966)

Directed by: René Clair
PHOTOGRAPHY: Alexandru David, Daniel Diot, Grigore Ionescu, Christian Matras
Synopsis:

In the 18th century, after the defeat from prince de Beaulieu, marshal d'Alemberg closes himself in a fortress with his army and his niece, princess Hélène. On the other hand, the military that is besieging them is having fun. While they are waiting for the enemy in the fortress to be chased outside by lack of food, they organize performances starring the Divine Actress. Thus, in the squalor of war there are conflicts and love intrigues intertwined.

color, 35 mm, 90 min

It Happened Tomorrow

(USA, 1944)

Directed by: René Clair
PHOTOGRAPHY: Eugen Schüfftan, Archie Stout
Synopsis:

Neimenovani američki grad tijekom 90-ih godina 19. stoljeća. Mladi novinar Larry Stevens nezadovoljan je poslom pisca novinskih osmrtnica u listu Evening News, koji se svom starom kolegi Popu Bensonu povjeri da bi želio znati sutrašnje vijesti, jer bi tako bio u prednosti pred svojim kolegama. Već iste večeri Pop mu u obličju nalik na duha na zagonetan način dostavi sutrašnje novine, što će Larryju pružiti mogućnost da prije svih objavi sutrašnje vijesti. No time će p...

b/w, 85'
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