Reproduction interdite (1957)
Directed by Gilles Grangier

Film Synopsis

Marc Kelber, a ruined art dealer, becomes the victim of a crook named Jacques Lacroix, who sells him a fake Gauguin painting after showing him a real one.  A few months later, Kelber encounters Lacroix by chance at a villa outside the town.  Kelber agrees to partner Lacroix in a criminal exploit with a third man named Watroff, a young painter who lives with his girlfriend Viviane.  An expert in his field, Watroff knows how to make a painting appear older than it is.  The plan is that Watroff will paint three copies of a real Gauguin that belongs to Lacroix, and Kelber will obtain certificates to prove the paintings' authenticity.  When the crooks start to sell the fake paintings at a huge profit, Watroff begins to have second thoughts.  After drinking too much, he tells the whole story to Viviane...