Renoir and Cocteau Films

17. Boudu Saved from Drowning (1932) Renoir. A Parisian tramp is saved and then taken in by a Bourgeoisie family - comedy ensues. Given its age, 78 years old, it was quite enjoyable and at 84 minutes not too long. The best thing is the character "Boudu" & the actor who plays him. The camera work is somewhat primitive and static and the pace slow. The humor is subtle and character driven. A nice little movie - but the satire and "social commentary" escape me. Rating **1/2

Orpheus (1949) - Cocteau. Update of the Orpheus myth to a modern french setting. Some excellent special effects (for the time) and some great acting. Enjoyable, but dry. I'll probably watch it again, when I'm more in the mood for myth and fantasy. Rating ***

Beauty and the Beast (1946) Cocteau. The fairly tale come to life Starring Jean Marais as the “Beast” and Josette Day as the “Beauty” PROS: Well photographed and Poetic. Day has a grace and simplicity which is very attractive while Marais does an excellent job despite being forced to wear a mask. Supposedly many young girls were upset when the Beast turned into a Prince – they wanted their “Beast”. Of course, Cocteau deliberately filmed it that way to invoke the response. CONS I'm not the target audience for the film.Summary: Excellent despite the subject matter. Rating ***1/2

Le Bete Humaine (1938) Directed by Jean Renoir. A well done adaption of the novel by Zola. One of Renoir's minor works - but still very good. JeanGabin does an excellent job as the Railroad engineer-brakeman who falls into a love triangle with Simone Simon and another. Needless to say it doesn't end happily. While based on Zola, the movie really feels like a film noir- femmefatale version. While the love triangle and murders are well done and the photography of 1930s is very interesting, the highlights are the scenes on the Train and the relationship between Gabin and his comic sidekick. Rating ***1/2