Bruno Podalydès

Biography: life and films

Since he first came to our cinema screens in the early 1990s, Bruno Podalydès has ploughed a very individualistic furrow as a filmmaker, developing a quaintly artisan style of cinema that is as eccentric as it is intimate. His films, mostly modest offerings that look as if they were made more for his loyal followers than a mainstream crowd, abound with wit and charm, whilst reflecting the absurdity and unpredictability of modern life. On these, he works in partnership with his brother Denis Podalydès, who has appeared in every one of his films to date and frequently lends a hand on the screenwriting. Himself a capable actor, Bruno has also appeared in his films.

Bruno Podalydès was born in Versailles on 11th March 1961, his father being a pharmacist, his mother an English teacher. He started out by making corporate films for Air France, before making his first commercial film Versailles Rive-Gauche in 1992 - this won the César for Best Short Film in 1993. His follow-up film, another short entitled Voilà (1994), was also praised by the critics. Podalydès's first feature was Dieu seul me voit (Versailles-Chantiers), which received the César for Best First Film in 1999. Together with his first short and subsequent feature Bancs publics (Versailles rive droite) (2008), this forms a quirky trilogy of films linked by train stations around Paris.

After his second feature, Liberté-Oléron (2001), a holiday-themed comedy, Podalydès made a surprising departure by taking on a big budget adaptation of a Gaston Leroux novel, Le Mystère de la chambre jaune (2003). The film's success encouraged its director to follow this with a sequel, Le Parfum de la dame en noir (2005). In both of these films, the director's brother Denis took the role of the journalist hero Joseph Rouletabille. After contributing a segment to the anthology film Paris, je t'aime (2006), Podalydès had his first notable flop with Bancs publics, which, despite its impressive ensemble cast, struggled to find an audience. This made the success of his next film, Adieu Berthe, l'enterrement de Mémé (2012), all the sweeter. This was followed by Comme un avion (2015), a comedy about a man in the throes of a mid-life crisis which rates as possibly the director's best film to date.

Filmography