Actress’ Biography:
Annie Girardot (Paris, France, October 25, 1931 - Paris, France, February 28, 2011)
Annie Girardot, born Annie Suzanne Girardot, was one of the most popular French actresses in the 1970s. She studied to be a nurse just like her mother but in 1949 enrolled in the Paris conservatory (Conservatoire de la rue blanche). In 1954, she graduated and joined the theatre group Comedie Française. After her debut, her performance in Typewriter thrilled the author of the drama, Jean Cocteau, who described her as “the biggest post-war drama temperament”. She remained with the Comedie Française until 1957 and in parallel worked for radio and television. She made her feature film debut in 1955 in Treize à table by André Hunebelle. After many smaller parts in films, she got the leading part in Luchino Visconti’s drama Rocco and His Brothers (Rocco e i suoi fratelli, 1960), by many regarded as her best role ever. On the set, she fell in love with her colleague Renato Salvatore (ironically, in the film his character murders hers) and they got married two years later. In the early 1960s, she made many films in French and Italian production, such as La donna scimmia (1964) by Marco Fererri. For the leading role in Marcel Carné’s drama Trois chambres a Manhattan (1965) she won the Volpi Cup at the Venice Film Festival. She had another impressive role in Vivre pour vivre (1967) by Claude Lelouch, after which she starred in the Yugoslav production Biće skoro propast sveta (1968) by Aleksandar Petrović and Dillinger è morto (1969) by Marco Fererri. Even though she never achieved international fame to the degree of other French actresses, she became an undeniable star in her home country after the film Mourir d'aimer (1971) by Andre Cayatte, which broke all box office records. She starred in many dramas, but never forgot her days in Comedie Française and acted in comedies such as La vieille fille (1972) and Cause toujours... tu m'intéresses! (1979). For her leading role in Docteur Françoise Gailland (1976) by Jean-Louis Bertucelli she won a César for Best Actress. She starred also in Tendre poulet (1978) by Philippe de Broca, American production All Night Long (1981) and Partir, revenir (1985) by Claude Lelouche. In the mid 1980s she starred to act more on television and only occasionally in feature films. In 1989, she published an autobiography Vivre d'aimer and another one in 1993. In 1990s she starred in Les Misérables (1995) by Claude Lelouche and won a César as Best Supporting Actress. She won the same award for the role of a mother in the film La pianiste / The Piano Teacher (2002) by Michael Haneke, with whom she worked again on Caché / Hidden (2005). In 2003, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and died from it seven years later. Director Nicolas Baulieu made a documentary Annie Girardot, ainsi va la vie (2008) about Annie Girardot’s last eight months until the illness took her away.
Filmography:
Christian (2007)
Boxes (2007)
C'est beau une ville la nuit (2006)
Le temps des porte-plumes (2006)
Des fleurs pour Irma (short film) (2005)
Caché (2005)
Allons petits enfants (TV film) (2005)
Je préfère qu'on reste amis (2005)
La petite Fadette (TV film) (2004)
La prophétie des grenouilles (2003) (animated, voiceover)
Simon le juste (TV film) (2003)
Epsteins Nacht (2002)
Les fleurs de Maureen (TV film) (2002)
Ceci est mon corps (2001)
La pianiste (2001)
Le marathon du lit (TV film) (2001)
T'aime (2000)
Ainsi soit nous (short film) (2000)
Le bois du Pardoux (TV film) (2000)
La façon de le dire (TV film) (1999)
L'âge de braise (1998)
Préférence (1998)
Shanghai 1937 (TV film) (1997)
Nuda proprietà vendesi (TV film) (1997)
Une soupe aux herbes sauvages (TV film) (1997)
Noces cruelles (TV film) (1996)
Les Bidochon (1996)
Petite soeur (TV film) (1996)
Tout ce qui brille (TV film) (1996)
Le dernier voyage (TV film) (1995)
Les Misérables (1995)
Jeanne (TV film) (1994)
Les braqueuses (1994)
Un pull par dessus l'autre (TV film) (1993)
Portagli i miei saluti - avanzi di galera (1993)
Colpo di coda (TV film) (1993)
Alibi perfetto (1992)
Les merisiers (TV film) (1992)
A Cry in the Night (TV film) (1992)
Toujours seuls (1991)
'Merci la vie' (1991)
Il y a des jours... et des lunes (1990)
Faccia di lepre (1990)
Le front dans les nuages (TV film) (1989)
Comédie d'amour (1989)
Cinq jours en juin (1989)
Ruf (1989)
Prisonnières (1988)
L'altro enigma (TV film) (1988)
The Legendary Life of Ernest Hemingway (1988)
Un métier du seigneur (TV film) (1986)
Adieu blaireau (1985)
Mussolini and I (TV film) (1985)
Partir, revenir (1985)
Souvenirs souvenirs (1984)
Liste noire (1984)
Père Noël et fils (TV film) (1983)
La revanche (1981)
La vie continue (1981)
All Night Long (1981)
La dernière nuit (TV film) (1981)
Une robe noire pour un tueur (1981)
Le coeur à l'envers (1980)
On a volé la cuisse de Jupiter (1980)
Bobo Jacco (1979)
Cause toujours... tu m'intéresses! (1979)
Le cavaleur (1979)
L'ingorgo - Una storia impossibile (1979)
La clé sur la porte (1978)
L'amour en question (1978)
Vas-y maman (1978)
La zizanie (1978)
Tendre poulet (1978)
Le point de mire (1977)
Jambon d'Ardenne (1977)
À chacun son enfer (1977)
Le dernier baiser (1977)
L'affaire (1977)
Cours après moi que je t'attrape (1976)
D'amour et d'eau fraîche (1976)
Docteur Françoise Gailland (1976)
Il pleut sur Santiago (1976)
Le gitan (1975)
Il faut vivre dangereusement (1975)
Il sospetto (1975)
La gifle (1974)
La bande à Bonnot (1974)
Juliette et Juliette (1974)
Ursule et Grelu (1974)
Il n'y a pas de fumée sans feu (1973)
Traitement de choc (1973)
Elle cause plus, elle flingue (1972)
Les feux de la chandeleur (1972)
La mandarine (1972)
La vieille fille (1972)
Mourir d'aimer (1971)
Le clair de terre (1970)
Les novices (1970)
Il seme dell'uomo (1970)
Elle boit pas, elle fume pas, elle drague pas, mais... elle cause! (1970)
Storia di una donna (1970)
Un homme qui me plaît (1969)
Erotissimo (1969)
Les gauloises bleues (1969)
Metti, una sera a cena (1969)
La vie, l'amour, la mort (1969)
Dillinger è morto (1969)
Le pain de ménage (TV film) (1968)
Bice skoro propast sveta (1968)
Vivre pour vivre (1967)
Zhurnalist (1967)
Le streghe (1967)
Trois chambres à Manhattan (1965)
The Dirty Game (1965)
Una voglia da morire (1965)
Déclic et des claques (1965)
Le belle famiglie (1964)
Un monsieur de compagnie (1964)
La ragazza in prestito (1964)
La donna scimmia (1964)
L'autre femme (1964)
La bonne soupe (1964)
I fuorilegge del matrimonio (1963)
I compagni (1963)
Le vice et la vertu (1963)
Il giorno più corto (1963)
Smog (1962)
Le crime ne paie pas (1962)
Le bateau d'Émile (1962)
Pourquoi Paris? (1962)
Amours célèbres (1961)
Rendezvous (1961)
La proie pour l'ombre (1961)
21 rue Blanche à Paris (1961) (voiceover)
La française et l'amour (1960)
Rocco e i suoi fratelli (1960)
Recours en grâce (1960)
La corde raide (1960)
Bobosse (1959)
Le désert de Pigalle (1958)
Maigret tend un piège (1958)
L'amour est en jeu (1957)
Le rouge est mis (1957)
La nuit des rois (TV film) (1957)
Reproduction interdite (1957)
L'homme aux clefs d'or (1956)
Treize à table (1955)