Gérard Oury,many people often forget it,was first an actor ,before becoming one of the most successful directors (the greatest ,to many);not only he played in plenty of French movies ,but he was also featured in Milestone's "they who dare" and Walsh's "sea devils" (the part of Napoleon).
In France-Soir newspaper,Paul Gordeaux drew comic strips ,which were transferred twice to the screen in 1961: one was "Les Amours Célèbres",directed by Michel Boisrond ;the second was OURY's "crime does not pay" ;both movies were made of sketches ;at least to my eyes,Oury's work has the edge on Boisrond's ;not only he had a dream of a cast ,but he had also some of the best French screenwriters of the time .
The trick Oury uses to open his movie is so smart that I will not reveal it ;it would spoil the surprise :after Cayatte (Les Amants De VERONE" ) and Duvivier ("La Fete A Henriette ) ,Oury simply renewed the "movie in the movie" technique with skill! eat your heart out ,Truffaut!
The first sketch is also the last in this bizarre construction!
Segment 2 :Le Masque or "revenge is a dish best eaten hot "
Edwige Feuillère ,Gabrielle Ferzetti,Rosanna Schiaffino
screenplay by Aurenche and Bost who wrote so many great stories I could not mention them all. From an Italian chronicle by Stendahl .Venice ,fifteenth century: an aging aristocrat 's mirror shows that her beauty is ,slowly but inexorably ,fading away;she's in love with a knight who is also a spy in the pay of the Genois;the lady's brother ,a powerful politician had him throw in a dungeon ;to free him,she reveals her sibling she's her accomplice cause she provides him with information :a scandal may break .To make the matters worse,there's a second aristocrat ,still young and beautiful.
This sketch may be the best of the lot: the settings are sumptuous and Oury outdoes himself in the terrific scene of the trap:sinister- looking figures appear ,one by one,at the end of every dark street of the city ,and the chapel of rest is a Gothic stroke of inspiration to rival the best moments in horror and fantasy movies.
Segment 3: "L'Affaire Hugues " or "a woman with a sense of honor"
Michele Morgan,PHilippe Noiret,Pierre Mondy,Jean Servais ,Lucienne Bogaert
based on the Hugues case circa 1887;to ruin a Deputé 's reputation, they claim that his wife had an extra-marital affair .
A conventional story ,on a vague political background ,but Henri Jeanson's caustic lines hit home when the chic bourgeois lady meets the shady "private eye" and the semi-whore :Jeanson remembers Georges Feydeau Some episodes are told by often genuine caricatures,engravings and testimonial pictures.
Segment 4 :L'Affaire Feynarou or 'to kill two birds with one stone"
Annie Girardot,Pierre Brasseur,Christian Marquand ,Paul Guers.
A man tells his mistress he 's going to get married for the bride 's dowry but that he intends to keep her too ;her husband discovers a compromising letter and threatens to kill the lover;so the wife urges the soon-to-be-married hunk to kill her spouse ("it would be self-defense")
This segment is a thriller,which is not a surprise ,coming from the famous Boileau-Narcejac team("Vertigo" and " Diabolique" );even though the ending is predictable,their story is full of unexpected twists and could have been part of the "Alfred Hitchcock presents " series.
Segment 1 (and 5!):"L'Homme de L'Avenue " or "accidents will happen"
Danielle Darrieux ,Richard Todd,Perrette Pradier.
A man ,who wants to commit the perfect crime (and to fly away with his lover) ,secures an irrefutable alibi;but you can't think of everything ;the "alibi",anEnglish driver ,an officer in uniform, plays the occasional Hercule,Poirot..
Written by Frederic Dard ,who teamed up with Oury for his second (and very good) effort "La menace" , it's another excellent thriller,with a great final unexpected twist which shows a witty humor,far from San Antonio,but there's no accounting for taste !
A (good) omen: Louis De Funès appears (yes,he does!) in this last segment ,his English (his Franglais more like) is riotously funny ...tO think that Oury/De Funès ,along with Bourvil,were about to dominate the French all-time box-office with their triumphs :"LE Corniaud " "La Grande Vadrouille" "Rabbi Jacob ,etc ...
These blockbusters outstripped "crime does not pay" which is a very entertaining work and certainly deserves to be (re)discovered by his fans (not only them!).
In France-Soir newspaper,Paul Gordeaux drew comic strips ,which were transferred twice to the screen in 1961: one was "Les Amours Célèbres",directed by Michel Boisrond ;the second was OURY's "crime does not pay" ;both movies were made of sketches ;at least to my eyes,Oury's work has the edge on Boisrond's ;not only he had a dream of a cast ,but he had also some of the best French screenwriters of the time .
The trick Oury uses to open his movie is so smart that I will not reveal it ;it would spoil the surprise :after Cayatte (Les Amants De VERONE" ) and Duvivier ("La Fete A Henriette ) ,Oury simply renewed the "movie in the movie" technique with skill! eat your heart out ,Truffaut!
The first sketch is also the last in this bizarre construction!
Segment 2 :Le Masque or "revenge is a dish best eaten hot "
Edwige Feuillère ,Gabrielle Ferzetti,Rosanna Schiaffino
screenplay by Aurenche and Bost who wrote so many great stories I could not mention them all. From an Italian chronicle by Stendahl .Venice ,fifteenth century: an aging aristocrat 's mirror shows that her beauty is ,slowly but inexorably ,fading away;she's in love with a knight who is also a spy in the pay of the Genois;the lady's brother ,a powerful politician had him throw in a dungeon ;to free him,she reveals her sibling she's her accomplice cause she provides him with information :a scandal may break .To make the matters worse,there's a second aristocrat ,still young and beautiful.
This sketch may be the best of the lot: the settings are sumptuous and Oury outdoes himself in the terrific scene of the trap:sinister- looking figures appear ,one by one,at the end of every dark street of the city ,and the chapel of rest is a Gothic stroke of inspiration to rival the best moments in horror and fantasy movies.
Segment 3: "L'Affaire Hugues " or "a woman with a sense of honor"
Michele Morgan,PHilippe Noiret,Pierre Mondy,Jean Servais ,Lucienne Bogaert
based on the Hugues case circa 1887;to ruin a Deputé 's reputation, they claim that his wife had an extra-marital affair .
A conventional story ,on a vague political background ,but Henri Jeanson's caustic lines hit home when the chic bourgeois lady meets the shady "private eye" and the semi-whore :Jeanson remembers Georges Feydeau Some episodes are told by often genuine caricatures,engravings and testimonial pictures.
Segment 4 :L'Affaire Feynarou or 'to kill two birds with one stone"
Annie Girardot,Pierre Brasseur,Christian Marquand ,Paul Guers.
A man tells his mistress he 's going to get married for the bride 's dowry but that he intends to keep her too ;her husband discovers a compromising letter and threatens to kill the lover;so the wife urges the soon-to-be-married hunk to kill her spouse ("it would be self-defense")
This segment is a thriller,which is not a surprise ,coming from the famous Boileau-Narcejac team("Vertigo" and " Diabolique" );even though the ending is predictable,their story is full of unexpected twists and could have been part of the "Alfred Hitchcock presents " series.
Segment 1 (and 5!):"L'Homme de L'Avenue " or "accidents will happen"
Danielle Darrieux ,Richard Todd,Perrette Pradier.
A man ,who wants to commit the perfect crime (and to fly away with his lover) ,secures an irrefutable alibi;but you can't think of everything ;the "alibi",anEnglish driver ,an officer in uniform, plays the occasional Hercule,Poirot..
Written by Frederic Dard ,who teamed up with Oury for his second (and very good) effort "La menace" , it's another excellent thriller,with a great final unexpected twist which shows a witty humor,far from San Antonio,but there's no accounting for taste !
A (good) omen: Louis De Funès appears (yes,he does!) in this last segment ,his English (his Franglais more like) is riotously funny ...tO think that Oury/De Funès ,along with Bourvil,were about to dominate the French all-time box-office with their triumphs :"LE Corniaud " "La Grande Vadrouille" "Rabbi Jacob ,etc ...
These blockbusters outstripped "crime does not pay" which is a very entertaining work and certainly deserves to be (re)discovered by his fans (not only them!).