French cinema: 1930s
L'Habit vert (1937)
Roger Richebé
The Duke of Maulévrier belongs to one of the oldest families in France, so it is right and proper that he should be a member of the Académie française, the noblest of France's institutions...
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Roger Richebé
Hercule (1938)
Alexander Esway
In the sunny Provençal village of Cadignan the locals are busy gathering in the wine harvest when old timer Monsieur Maffre suffers what he believes to be a fatal injury...
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Alexander Esway
L'Homme à l'Hispano (1933)
Jean Epstein
Virtually bankrupt, Georges Dewalter has made up his mind to leave France and move to Senegal in the hope of making his fortune...
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Jean Epstein
L'Homme mystérieux (1933)
Maurice Tourneur
To resolve a business matter, Pierre needs to have his brother Raymond released from the psychiatric institution to which he was committed after he attacked his wife Louise...
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Maurice Tourneur
Hôtel du Nord (1938)
Marcel Carné
One evening, two young lovers, Renée and Pierre, check into the Hôtel du Nord in Paris, near to the Canal Saint-Martin...
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Marcel Carné
J'accuse! (1938)
Abel Gance
After serving in the First World War, Jean Diaz returns to his home town but cannot bring himself to continue his affair with Edith, the wife of one of his fallen comrades... [More...]
Abel Gance
After serving in the First World War, Jean Diaz returns to his home town but cannot bring himself to continue his affair with Edith, the wife of one of his fallen comrades... [More...]
J'ai une idée (1934)
Roger Richebé
Aubrey Allington is an unsuccessful inventor who is saddled with debts, thanks in part to his wife Louise's genius for spending money faster than he can make it... [More...]
Roger Richebé
Aubrey Allington is an unsuccessful inventor who is saddled with debts, thanks in part to his wife Louise's genius for spending money faster than he can make it... [More...]
Jean de la Lune (1931)
Jean Choux
Jeff is a poet and dreamer, nicknamed 'Jean de la lune' because of his child-like innocence. He is madly in love with Marceline and marries her, completely unaware of her wayward nature which compels her to chase after any man that catches her eye... [More...]
Jean Choux
Jeff is a poet and dreamer, nicknamed 'Jean de la lune' because of his child-like innocence. He is madly in love with Marceline and marries her, completely unaware of her wayward nature which compels her to chase after any man that catches her eye... [More...]
Jim la houlette (1935)
André Berthomieu
Jacques Moluchet is the author of several best selling romantic novels, but unfortunately he receives no credit for this as his work is published under the name of his unscrupulous employer Philippe Bretonneau, who makes himself rich at his expense... [More...]
André Berthomieu
Jacques Moluchet is the author of several best selling romantic novels, but unfortunately he receives no credit for this as his work is published under the name of his unscrupulous employer Philippe Bretonneau, who makes himself rich at his expense... [More...]
Jofroi (1934)
Marcel Pagnol
Jofroi, an ageing peasant, sells his orchard to one of his neighbours, Fonse. When the trees fail to produce any fruit, Fonse decides he will cut them down... [More...]
Marcel Pagnol
Jofroi, an ageing peasant, sells his orchard to one of his neighbours, Fonse. When the trees fail to produce any fruit, Fonse decides he will cut them down... [More...]
Le Joueur d'échecs (1938)
Jean Dréville
1776. Along with Lithuania and Prussia, Poland has succumbed to the might of the Russian Empire, but a determined resistance movement is working to bring an end to the country's annexation... [More...]
Jean Dréville
1776. Along with Lithuania and Prussia, Poland has succumbed to the might of the Russian Empire, but a determined resistance movement is working to bring an end to the country's annexation... [More...]
Le Jour se lève (1939)
Marcel Carné
François, an ordinary factory worker, barricades himself in his one-room lodgings, after shooting dead another man... [More...]
Marcel Carné
François, an ordinary factory worker, barricades himself in his one-room lodgings, after shooting dead another man... [More...]
Justin de Marseille (1935)
Maurice Tourneur
In 1930s Marseille, Justin makes a dishonest living as the town's most respected gangster. Loyal to those who serve him well, Justin has few enemies and he rules the town unopposed - until he gets into a deadly feud with an unscrupulous Italian rival, Esposito... [More...]
Maurice Tourneur
In 1930s Marseille, Justin makes a dishonest living as the town's most respected gangster. Loyal to those who serve him well, Justin has few enemies and he rules the town unopposed - until he gets into a deadly feud with an unscrupulous Italian rival, Esposito... [More...]
Kameradschaft (1931)
Georg Wilhelm Pabst
During the Great Depression, France and Germany are both beset with high unemployment. In a French border town, unemployed German miners are turned away when they try to find work in a French mine... [More...]
Georg Wilhelm Pabst
During the Great Depression, France and Germany are both beset with high unemployment. In a French border town, unemployed German miners are turned away when they try to find work in a French mine... [More...]
La Kermesse héroïque (1935)
Jacques Feyder
1616. In the small Flemish village of Boom, the burgomaster is preparing a banquet for his daughter's wedding to the local butcher... [More...]
Jacques Feyder
1616. In the small Flemish village of Boom, the burgomaster is preparing a banquet for his daughter's wedding to the local butcher... [More...]
Lac aux dames (1934)
Marc Allégret
Éric Heller, an unemployed engineer, finds work as a swimming instructor at a popular Austrian resort beside the alluring Lac-aux-dames lake... [More...]
Marc Allégret
Éric Heller, an unemployed engineer, finds work as a swimming instructor at a popular Austrian resort beside the alluring Lac-aux-dames lake... [More...]
Macao, l'enfer du jeu (1939)
Jean Delannoy
In the late 1930s, China and Japan are locked in a fierce military conflict. Mireille, a French actress, is one of many hundreds of westerners who are desperately seeking a safe way out of war-torn China... [More...]
Jean Delannoy
In the late 1930s, China and Japan are locked in a fierce military conflict. Mireille, a French actress, is one of many hundreds of westerners who are desperately seeking a safe way out of war-torn China... [More...]
Mademoiselle ma mère (1936)
Henri Decoin
In her search for the perfect husband, Jacqueline Vignolle is slowly driving her parents to distraction. After fourteen failed engagements, Jacqueline still hasn't found her beau idéal, and so she decides to marry the next eligible man she meets... [More...]
Henri Decoin
In her search for the perfect husband, Jacqueline Vignolle is slowly driving her parents to distraction. After fourteen failed engagements, Jacqueline still hasn't found her beau idéal, and so she decides to marry the next eligible man she meets... [More...]
Maria Chapdelaine (1934)
Julien Duvivier
Maria Chapdelaine lives with her parents and siblings in a remote corner of Quebec. The nearest town is Peribonka, where, one fine spring day, Maria meets François Paradis, an introverted but likeable hunter... [More...]
Julien Duvivier
Maria Chapdelaine lives with her parents and siblings in a remote corner of Quebec. The nearest town is Peribonka, where, one fine spring day, Maria meets François Paradis, an introverted but likeable hunter... [More...]
Marius (1931)
Alexander Korda
César is the owner of a café in the French port of Marseilles, which he runs with his twenty-year-old son Marius... [More...]
Alexander Korda
César is the owner of a café in the French port of Marseilles, which he runs with his twenty-year-old son Marius... [More...]
La Marseillaise (1938)
Jean Renoir
On 14th July 1789, the Duke of Rochefoucauld informs King Louis XVI of France that the Bastille has fallen to a Parisian mob... [More...]
Jean Renoir
On 14th July 1789, the Duke of Rochefoucauld informs King Louis XVI of France that the Bastille has fallen to a Parisian mob... [More...]
La Maternelle (1933)
Jean Benoît-Lévy
After her father's bankruptcy Rose, an educated woman in her early twenties, is abandoned by her fiancé and is forced to fall back on her own resources... [More...]
Jean Benoît-Lévy
After her father's bankruptcy Rose, an educated woman in her early twenties, is abandoned by her fiancé and is forced to fall back on her own resources... [More...]
Mayerling (1936)
Anatole Litvak
In the late 1880s, Archduke Rudolph is the crown prince of Austria, a rebellious young man who prefers the company of ordinary folk to that of the nobility... [More...]
Anatole Litvak
In the late 1880s, Archduke Rudolph is the crown prince of Austria, a rebellious young man who prefers the company of ordinary folk to that of the nobility... [More...]
Merlusse (1935)
Marcel Pagnol
The undisciplined pupils at a boarding school in the south of France have a habit of giving their teachers a hard time. The main target of their evil sense of humour is poor Monsieur Blanchard, a teacher they nickname Merlusse on account of his very peculiar odour... [More...]
Marcel Pagnol
The undisciplined pupils at a boarding school in the south of France have a habit of giving their teachers a hard time. The main target of their evil sense of humour is poor Monsieur Blanchard, a teacher they nickname Merlusse on account of his very peculiar odour... [More...]
Le Messager (1937)
Raymond Rouleau
It is in a blaze of impetuosity that Nick Dange divorces his rich English wife Florence so that he can marry another woman, Marie... [More...]
Raymond Rouleau
It is in a blaze of impetuosity that Nick Dange divorces his rich English wife Florence so that he can marry another woman, Marie... [More...]
Le Million (1931)
René Clair
A penniless artist, Michel, is pursued by creditors when he discovers he has won the million florin lottery. He realises that he left the winning lottery ticket in his jacket, which he gave to his girlfriend, Béatrice, to repair... [More...]
René Clair
A penniless artist, Michel, is pursued by creditors when he discovers he has won the million florin lottery. He realises that he left the winning lottery ticket in his jacket, which he gave to his girlfriend, Béatrice, to repair... [More...]
Les Misérables (1933)
Raymond Bernard
Jean Valjean leaves jail, having served a 15-year sentence for stealing a loaf of bread, a hard and bitter man. The kindness of a bishop sets him on a new course, however, and eight years later he has become Monsieur Madeleine, a respected mayor and industrialist... [More...]
Raymond Bernard
Jean Valjean leaves jail, having served a 15-year sentence for stealing a loaf of bread, a hard and bitter man. The kindness of a bishop sets him on a new course, however, and eight years later he has become Monsieur Madeleine, a respected mayor and industrialist... [More...]
Le Monde tremblera (1939)
Richard Pottier
With capital supplied by the unscrupulous banker Emil Lasser, Dr Jean Durand succeeds in creating a machine that can predict, to the nearest minute, when an individual will die... [More...]
Richard Pottier
With capital supplied by the unscrupulous banker Emil Lasser, Dr Jean Durand succeeds in creating a machine that can predict, to the nearest minute, when an individual will die... [More...]
Monsieur Coccinelle (1938)
Dominique Bernard-Deschamps
Alfred Coccinelle is a humdrum civil servant who leads a humdrum middle class existence with his wife Mélanie and old maiden aunt Aurore... [More...]
Dominique Bernard-Deschamps
Alfred Coccinelle is a humdrum civil servant who leads a humdrum middle class existence with his wife Mélanie and old maiden aunt Aurore... [More...]
Mor vran (1931)
Jean Epstein
For those who eke out an existence on Sein, one of the smaller islands in the Breton archipelago, life is unremittingly hard... [More...]
Jean Epstein
For those who eke out an existence on Sein, one of the smaller islands in the Breton archipelago, life is unremittingly hard... [More...]