Quai des Orfèvres
Encyclopedia
Quai des Orfèvres is a 1947
French
police procedural
drama
based on the book Légitime défense by Stanislas-Andre Steeman
. Directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot
the film stars Suzy Delair
as Jenny Lamour, Bernard Blier
as Maurice Martineau, Louis Jouvet
as Inspector Antoine and Simone Renant
as Dora.
The film was Clouzot's third directorial effort, and the first after the controversy of Le corbeau
. Without having the novel on hand, Clouzot and Jean Ferry
based the film on memory and deviated significantly from the original story. The film was released in France and was popular with both audiences and critics. On the film's re-release in the United States in 2002, it continued to receive praise from critics as one of the director's best films.
Antoine (Jouvet).
and was his first film in four years. Clouzot had been banned from film making after the controversy after the release Le corbeau
and due to Clouzot's collaboration with the German-owned company Continental Films. During Clouzot's inactivity, he wrote scripts for films that were never released. He met with producer Anatole Eliacheff who offered to financially back Clouzot's next film provided that it would be a commercial film. Clouzot suggested the Belgian murder mystery Légitime défense (Self-Defense) by Stanislas-André Steeman
which he had read during the Occupation. This production was meant to be a commission to end Clouzot's four years of enforced inactivity and take advantage of the new popular style of crime literature. Clouzot had previously written screenplays based on Steeman's work including Georges Lacombe
's Le Dernier des six (1943) and his own debut, L'Assassin habite au 21. Eliacheff agreed and shortly after sold the rights to another producer, Roger de Venloo.
When trying to find a copy of Légitime défense to re-read, Clouzot found that it was out of print. Clouzot wrote a letter to the Steeman to obtain a copy and began to adapt the story from memory with writer Jean Ferry
. By the time a copy of the book arrived, Clouzot and Ferry had already written the script which deviated greatly from Steeman's novel. The changes in the script include the identity of the real murderer, the settings of the action, and the introduction of the lesbian photographer character Dora Monier.
Quai des Orfèvres was also a comeback film for director-actor Louis Jouvet
with whom Clouzot had become good friends before World War II
. Jouvet accepted the part of Inspector Antoine on the condition that a flexible shooting schedule would be allowed and that Clouzot would cast some of Jouvet's troupe members in the film. Clouzot agreed and cast Leo Lapara as one of Antoine's colleagues and Fernand René as the music hall director. Clouzot cast Charles Dullin
as Brignon, the murder victim. It would be the last film appearance for Dullin, who died in 1949. The main female lead was written for Suzy Delair
who was Clouzot's romantic partner at the time of filming. The film went into production on February 3, 1947 and finished filming on May 10.
in March 1948 under the title Jenny Lamour. Quai des orfèvres was re-released for a limited run within America on October 25, 2002.
praised the director Clouzot, referring to him as "not just a film director. He's a creative artist who sticks to his initial idea, works it out in shots, words, actions." François Chalais
wrote a positive review in Carrefour, stating the film "commands the keenest admiration at any given moment, the dialogue of the film is the work of a truly great and extremely subtle dramatist. That's one of M. Clouzot's most remarkable traits: he knows how to write." At the 1947 Venice International Film Festival, Clouzot won the International Prize for Best Director for the film. The film received positive critical reception in the United States on its initial release. Bosley Crowther
of The New York Times
referred to the film as "a fascinating and penetrating film". Richard L. Coe
of The Washington Post
referred to the film as "a fine, engrossing French crime film". Variety
gave the film a positive review, proclaiming that "In every respect [Quai des Orfèvres] is outstanding." In 1949, the film won an Edgar Award
for Best Foreign film.
Modern reception of the film has also been positive. French critics have continued to priase the film since its release. In 1964 Jean Mitry
wrote that the film is "one of the few films—with Renoir's Rules of the Game, All About Eve
, and two or three others—which allows us to think that the cinema, like the novel and the theater,can some day be an instrument for exploring the human soul." In 1986, Michel Perez wrote a review for Le Matin de Paris
stating that Quai des Orfèvres "was nothing less than the most powerful, best constructed, best written, best directed and most telling film about society of its day." In 1995, a critics poll in the French film magazine Positif
placed Quai des Orfèvres as the second greatest French thriller of all time. The film ranking website Rotten Tomatoes
reported that 100% of critics had given the film positive reviews, based upon a sample of 30. At Metacritic
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average
score of 89, based on 10 reviews.
on May 27, 2003. In the United Kingdom
, a DVD was released on April 30, 2007 by Optimum Releasing
. The Criterion DVD is now out of print.
1947 in film
The year 1947 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*May 22 - Great Expectations is premiered in New York.*November 24 : The United States House of Representatives of the 80th Congress voted 346 to 17 to approve citations for contempt of Congress against the "Hollywood Ten".*November 25...
French
Cinema of France
The Cinema of France comprises the art of film and creative movies made within the nation of France or by French filmmakers abroad.France is the birthplace of cinema and was responsible for many of its early significant contributions. Several important cinematic movements, including the Nouvelle...
police procedural
Police procedural
The police procedural is a subgenre of detective fiction which attempts to convincingly depict the activities of a police force as they investigate crimes. While traditional detective novels usually concentrate on a single crime, police procedurals frequently depict investigations into several...
drama
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
based on the book Légitime défense by Stanislas-Andre Steeman
Stanislas-André Steeman
Stanislas-Andre Steeman is an author and Belgian illustrator of French expression.He wrote many mystery novels, some of those were adapted to the screen, such as The Murderer Lives at Number 21 or Mystère à Shanghai...
. Directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot
Henri-Georges Clouzot
Henri-Georges Clouzot was a French film director, screenwriter and producer. He is best remembered for his work in the thriller film genre, having directed The Wages of Fear and Les Diaboliques, which are critically recognized to be among the greatest films from the 1950s...
the film stars Suzy Delair
Suzy Delair
Suzy Delair is a vivacious French entertainer who starred in many different films. Her real name is Suzanne Pierrette Delaire....
as Jenny Lamour, Bernard Blier
Bernard Blier
Bernard Blier was a French character actor. His rotund features and premature baldness allowed him to often play cuckolded husbands in his early career. He proved to be one of France's most versatile and sought-after character actors, performing interchangeably in comedies and dramas...
as Maurice Martineau, Louis Jouvet
Louis Jouvet
Louis Jouvet was a renowned French actor, director, and theatre director.- Life :Overcoming speech impediments and sometimes paralyzing stage fright as a young man, Jouvet's first important association was with Jacques Copeau's Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier, beginning in 1913...
as Inspector Antoine and Simone Renant
Simone Renant
Simone Renant was a French film actress. She appeared in 43 films between 1934 and 1983. She was born in Amiens, France and died in Garches, France.-Selected filmography:* Voyage sans espoir...
as Dora.
The film was Clouzot's third directorial effort, and the first after the controversy of Le corbeau
Le Corbeau
Le Corbeau is a 1943 French film directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot. The film was notable for causing serious trouble to its director after World War II because it had been produced by Continental Films, a German production company established in France in the early months of the war, and because...
. Without having the novel on hand, Clouzot and Jean Ferry
Jean Ferry
Jean Levy known as Jean Ferry was a French writer and follower of the 'pataphysical tradition'.- See also :* La Loi des rues * Le Saint prend l'affût...
based the film on memory and deviated significantly from the original story. The film was released in France and was popular with both audiences and critics. On the film's re-release in the United States in 2002, it continued to receive praise from critics as one of the director's best films.
Plot
Jenny Lamour (Delair) wants to succeed in the theatre. Her husband and accompanist is Maurice Martineau (Blier), a mild-mannered but jealous man. When he finds out that Jenny has been making eyes at Brignon, a lecherous old businessman, in order to further her career, he loses his temper and threatens Brignon with death. Despite this, Jenny goes to a secret rendezvous at Brignon's apartment, who is murdered the same evening. The criminal investigations are led by InspectorInspector
Inspector is both a police rank and an administrative position, both used in a number of contexts. However, it is not an equivalent rank in each police force.- Australia :...
Antoine (Jouvet).
Production
Quai des Orfèvres was directed by Henri-Georges ClouzotHenri-Georges Clouzot
Henri-Georges Clouzot was a French film director, screenwriter and producer. He is best remembered for his work in the thriller film genre, having directed The Wages of Fear and Les Diaboliques, which are critically recognized to be among the greatest films from the 1950s...
and was his first film in four years. Clouzot had been banned from film making after the controversy after the release Le corbeau
Le Corbeau
Le Corbeau is a 1943 French film directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot. The film was notable for causing serious trouble to its director after World War II because it had been produced by Continental Films, a German production company established in France in the early months of the war, and because...
and due to Clouzot's collaboration with the German-owned company Continental Films. During Clouzot's inactivity, he wrote scripts for films that were never released. He met with producer Anatole Eliacheff who offered to financially back Clouzot's next film provided that it would be a commercial film. Clouzot suggested the Belgian murder mystery Légitime défense (Self-Defense) by Stanislas-André Steeman
Stanislas-André Steeman
Stanislas-Andre Steeman is an author and Belgian illustrator of French expression.He wrote many mystery novels, some of those were adapted to the screen, such as The Murderer Lives at Number 21 or Mystère à Shanghai...
which he had read during the Occupation. This production was meant to be a commission to end Clouzot's four years of enforced inactivity and take advantage of the new popular style of crime literature. Clouzot had previously written screenplays based on Steeman's work including Georges Lacombe
Georges Lacombe (film director)
-Filmography:* 1928 : La Zone * 1931 : Boule de gomme* 1932 : La Femme invisible* 1933 : Un jour d'été* 1933 : Ce cochon de Morin* 1934 : Jeunesse* 1935 : Épousez ma femme* 1935 : La Route heureuse...
's Le Dernier des six (1943) and his own debut, L'Assassin habite au 21. Eliacheff agreed and shortly after sold the rights to another producer, Roger de Venloo.
When trying to find a copy of Légitime défense to re-read, Clouzot found that it was out of print. Clouzot wrote a letter to the Steeman to obtain a copy and began to adapt the story from memory with writer Jean Ferry
Jean Ferry
Jean Levy known as Jean Ferry was a French writer and follower of the 'pataphysical tradition'.- See also :* La Loi des rues * Le Saint prend l'affût...
. By the time a copy of the book arrived, Clouzot and Ferry had already written the script which deviated greatly from Steeman's novel. The changes in the script include the identity of the real murderer, the settings of the action, and the introduction of the lesbian photographer character Dora Monier.
Quai des Orfèvres was also a comeback film for director-actor Louis Jouvet
Louis Jouvet
Louis Jouvet was a renowned French actor, director, and theatre director.- Life :Overcoming speech impediments and sometimes paralyzing stage fright as a young man, Jouvet's first important association was with Jacques Copeau's Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier, beginning in 1913...
with whom Clouzot had become good friends before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Jouvet accepted the part of Inspector Antoine on the condition that a flexible shooting schedule would be allowed and that Clouzot would cast some of Jouvet's troupe members in the film. Clouzot agreed and cast Leo Lapara as one of Antoine's colleagues and Fernand René as the music hall director. Clouzot cast Charles Dullin
Charles Dullin
Charles Dullin was a French actor, theater manager and director.-Life:Dullin was a student of Jacques Copeau...
as Brignon, the murder victim. It would be the last film appearance for Dullin, who died in 1949. The main female lead was written for Suzy Delair
Suzy Delair
Suzy Delair is a vivacious French entertainer who starred in many different films. Her real name is Suzanne Pierrette Delaire....
who was Clouzot's romantic partner at the time of filming. The film went into production on February 3, 1947 and finished filming on May 10.
Cast
- Suzy DelairSuzy DelairSuzy Delair is a vivacious French entertainer who starred in many different films. Her real name is Suzanne Pierrette Delaire....
as Jenny Lamour - Bernard BlierBernard BlierBernard Blier was a French character actor. His rotund features and premature baldness allowed him to often play cuckolded husbands in his early career. He proved to be one of France's most versatile and sought-after character actors, performing interchangeably in comedies and dramas...
as Maurice Martineau (Jenny's husband) - Louis JouvetLouis JouvetLouis Jouvet was a renowned French actor, director, and theatre director.- Life :Overcoming speech impediments and sometimes paralyzing stage fright as a young man, Jouvet's first important association was with Jacques Copeau's Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier, beginning in 1913...
as Inspector Antoine - Simone RenantSimone RenantSimone Renant was a French film actress. She appeared in 43 films between 1934 and 1983. She was born in Amiens, France and died in Garches, France.-Selected filmography:* Voyage sans espoir...
as Dora Monier - Charles DullinCharles DullinCharles Dullin was a French actor, theater manager and director.-Life:Dullin was a student of Jacques Copeau...
as Brignon
Release and reception
Quai des Orfèvres was released on October 3, 1947 in Paris. In 1947, it was the fourth most popular film in France, drawing 5.5 million spectators. The film has had several theatrical revivals in France since its original release. The film was released in New YorkNew York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
in March 1948 under the title Jenny Lamour. Quai des orfèvres was re-released for a limited run within America on October 25, 2002.
Critical reception
The film received positive reception from critics on its initial release in France. Pierre Chartier of France-Libre wrote that the film was "a watershed in the history of the French crime film." Jean Desternes of CombatCombat (newspaper)
Combat was a French newspaper created during the Second World War. Originally a clandestine newspaper of the Resistance, it was headed by Albert Ollivier, Jean Bloch-Michel, Georges Altschuler and, most of all, Albert Camus, Jean-Paul Sartre, André Malraux, Emmanuel Mounier, and then Raymond Aron...
praised the director Clouzot, referring to him as "not just a film director. He's a creative artist who sticks to his initial idea, works it out in shots, words, actions." François Chalais
François Chalais
François Chalais was a prominent French reporter, journalist, writer and film historian. The François Chalais Prize at the annual Cannes Film Festival is named after him....
wrote a positive review in Carrefour, stating the film "commands the keenest admiration at any given moment, the dialogue of the film is the work of a truly great and extremely subtle dramatist. That's one of M. Clouzot's most remarkable traits: he knows how to write." At the 1947 Venice International Film Festival, Clouzot won the International Prize for Best Director for the film. The film received positive critical reception in the United States on its initial release. Bosley Crowther
Bosley Crowther
Bosley Crowther was a journalist and author who was film critic for The New York Times for 27 years. His reviews and articles helped shape the careers of actors, directors and screenwriters, though his reviews, at times, were unnecessarily mean...
of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
referred to the film as "a fascinating and penetrating film". Richard L. Coe
Richard L. Coe
Richard Livingston Coe , born in New York City, was a theatre and cinema critic for The Washington Post for more than fifty years. Coe was renowned for the astute advice he gave to many pre-Broadway try-out companies...
of The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
referred to the film as "a fine, engrossing French crime film". Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
gave the film a positive review, proclaiming that "In every respect [Quai des Orfèvres] is outstanding." In 1949, the film won an Edgar Award
Edgar Award
The Edgar Allan Poe Awards , named after Edgar Allan Poe, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America...
for Best Foreign film.
Modern reception of the film has also been positive. French critics have continued to priase the film since its release. In 1964 Jean Mitry
Jean Mitry
Jean Mitry was a French film theorist, critic and filmmaker, co-founder of France's first film society and later of the Cinémathèque Française in 1938....
wrote that the film is "one of the few films—with Renoir's Rules of the Game, All About Eve
All About Eve
All About Eve is a 1950 American drama film written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, based on the 1946 short story "The Wisdom of Eve", by Mary Orr.The film stars Bette Davis as Margo Channing, a highly regarded but aging Broadway star...
, and two or three others—which allows us to think that the cinema, like the novel and the theater,can some day be an instrument for exploring the human soul." In 1986, Michel Perez wrote a review for Le Matin de Paris
Le Matin de Paris
Le Matin de Paris was a French daily newspaper, founded on 1 March 1977 by Claude Perdriel, and disappearing in 1987...
stating that Quai des Orfèvres "was nothing less than the most powerful, best constructed, best written, best directed and most telling film about society of its day." In 1995, a critics poll in the French film magazine Positif
Positif (magazine)
Positif is a French film magazine, founded in 1952 by Bernard Chardère. It was published by Eric Losfeld.It often acted as a counterpoint to Cahiers du cinéma, another well-known French film journal, notably with Gerard Gozlan's article sarcastically titled "In Praise of André Bazin."The current...
placed Quai des Orfèvres as the second greatest French thriller of all time. The film ranking website Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reported that 100% of critics had given the film positive reviews, based upon a sample of 30. At Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 89, based on 10 reviews.
Home media
Quai des Orfèvres was released in North America on DVD by The Criterion CollectionThe Criterion Collection
The Criterion Collection is a video-distribution company selling "important classic and contemporary films" to film aficionados. The Criterion series is noted for helping to standardize the letterbox format for home video, bonus features, and special editions...
on May 27, 2003. In the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, a DVD was released on April 30, 2007 by Optimum Releasing
Optimum Releasing
StudioCanal UK is a film distributor company working in the UK and Ireland. The company releases many films, including foreign language films, anime releases such as Studio Ghibli's films and independent British, Irish and American films in the UK and sometimes Ireland.Optimum was acquired by...
. The Criterion DVD is now out of print.