Catherine Hubscher, who washes the shirts of young Napoleon and other soldiers fighting the Revolution, falls in love with Sergeant Lefebvre. Circumstances bring Lefebvre a noble title and even more -- Napoleon decides to make him the local ruler over a large territorial fiefdom. But trouble brews...
The umpteenth adaptation of Dumas' novel finds d'Artagnan and his friends promoting the love affairs of Anne of Austria and the Duke of Buckingham, incurring the wrath of the Cardinal and exposing themselves to the cold cruelty of Milady de Winter. Also featured are the tender Mme Bonacieux, the...
Arsène Lupin is extremely popular among the population, because he allows the needy to share in his acquired wealth. Before entering the service of the German Emperor Wilhelm II, he removes his vault in Alsace, steals two paintings of old masters, steals valuable gems and calls out to the police...
Marching down the Italian peninsula to sack ancient Rome, Etruscan warrior Drusco instead offers to hold back his onslaught if the Romans hand over hostages, including Clelia, the sexy leader of a clan of woman warriors. But before long, intrigue and betrayal unravel the fragile peace. Directors...
Henri La Tour, a strolling player, is also a daring adventurer. So, when, after accomplishing a brilliant feat, he is awarded a title by King Louis XV, the Duke of Saint-Sever takes offense at it and challenges Henri to a duel. However, while they fight, a group of Austrian soldiers appear suddenly...
Set amid the military maneuvers and Quatorze Juillet carnivals of turn-of-the-century France, Jean Renoir’s delirious romantic comedy Elena and her Men stars a radiant Ingrid Bergman as a beautiful, but impoverished, Polish princess who drives men of all stations to fits of desperate love. When...
This drama about the Carmelite order of nuns is set during the French Revolution. A young woman seeks refuge with the Carmelites because she is terrified of dying during the upheaval. The longer she associates with the nuns the more she is transformed by their faith and devotion.
The scene is a tawdry hotel room in Limbo, where several damned souls are gathered. At first, the group fails to comprehend where they are or why they're there. When the horrible truth dawns upon them, they carp and snipe at one another, blaming everyone but themselves for their dismal fate.
Pierre Fresnay plays the title character in Le Defroque (The Defrocked One). Cast out by his church, former priest Maurice (Fresnay) delights in mocking the traditions and credos of Catholicism. Even so, young Gerard (Pierre Trabaud) becomes convinced that Maurice has never truly lost his calling....
Julie and Désirée Clary are courted by the brothers Joseph and Napoleon Bonaparte. Joseph marries Julie and Napoleon is affianced to Désirée. When Napoleon breaks the engagement and marries Joséphine de Beauharnais, Désirée becomes involved with General Bernadotte.
Without seeming to touch it, journalist Trupeau is interested in the doings of Mireille, a jewelry store saleswoman. A certain Jojo is hanging around the young girl, and not for the right reasons, but to pull off a "heist". Although one of his men betrays him and has to be shot, Jojo succeeds. The...
Identite Judiciare stars Raymond Souplex as wily French police inspector Basquier. The villain is Berthet (Jean Debucourt), a high-ranking government official. Basquier suspects that Berthet is a vicious murderer, but is unable to prove anything thanks to bureaucratic interference. Thus, the good...
In order to please Martineau, a wealthy industrialist, cynical Gabory accepts to organize a rigged beauty contest whose winner will be Françoise, Martineau's young mistress. However, there are other comely contestants among whom Christiane, the daughter of a general, Jackie, an unemployed actress,...
Being born a witch's daughter did not bode well for your future in the Middle Ages. Guillaumette tries to stay on the straight and narrow with a little help from a priest she visits.
This modest, unpretentious French film is a streamlined version of the true story previously cinematized as The Song of Bernadette (1943). Daniele Ajort plays the simple 19th-century French peasant girl who insists that she has experienced a vision of the Virgin Mary. Once this sighting becomes...
As the title of this French documentary indicates, Ce Siecle a 50 Ans examines the 20th Century at its halfway point. Utilizing the archives of several European film reserves, director Denise Tua offers a fascinating mosaic of the people and events that shaped the years 1900 to 1950. Complementing...
Mario di Donati, a deserter from the Italian army, lives in Paris under a false name with Germaine, his French lover. When the latter learns about his hidden past, she feels hurt by Mario's lack of trust in her and she distances herself from him. In despair, Mario surrenders to the law but, at the...
Emile Magis, a modest employee, more or less ostracized by the others, would like only one thing, to be happy. Little by little he realizes that life in society is a matter of convention, lies and deception. When he has understood that cynicism rules the world, he decides to play by its untold...
Sophie de Réan, an unruly mischievous little girl grows up under the thumb of Mademoiselle, her strict governess. Following her mother's death, she is entrusted to Mme de Fleurville, her aunt, who at the same time hires Mademoiselle to further Sophie's education. A few years later, the little girl...
"Les jeux sont faits," is a fantasy film based on a screenplay by French existentialist philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre. A society heiress and a resistance fighter are tragically killed at the same moment and meet in the afterlife. They are offered a second chance at life if they can prove their love...
