André Cayatte
1909 - 1989
Nous sommes tous des assassins
André Cayatte
Marcel Mouloudji, Raymond Pellegrin
Originally titled Nous Sommes Tout des Assassins, We Are All Murderers was directed by Andre Cayette, a former lawyer who detested France's execution system. Charles Spaak's screenplay makes no attempt to launder the four principal characters (Marcel Mouloudji, Raymond Pellegrin, Antoinine Balpetre, Julien Verdeir): never mind the motivations, these are all hardened murderers. Still, the film condemns the sadistic ritual through which these four men are brought to the guillotine. In France, the policy is to never tell the condemned man when the execution will occur--and then to show up without warning and drag the victim kicking and screaming to his doom, without any opportunity to make peace with himself or his Maker. By the end of this harrowing film, the audience feels as dehumanized as the four "protagonists." We Are All Murderers was roundly roasted by the French law enforcement establishment, but it won a special jury prize at the 1952 Cannes Film Festival.
We Are All Murderers
Jean-Marc ou La vie conjugale
André Cayatte
Jacques Charrier, Marie-José Nat
The story of the couple from the very first meeting to break up told from a view of a man, Jean-Marc. The film shares the same plot with "Françoise ou La vie conjugale", that tells the same story from another perspective.
Anatomy of a Marriage: My Days with Jean-Marc
Risky Business
André Cayatte
Jacques Brel, Emmanuelle Riva
A teenage girl accuses her primary schoolteacher, Jean Doucet (Jacques Brel), of trying to rape her. The police and the mayor investigate, but Doucet denies the charges. Two other students come forward to reveal more of Doucet's misconduct – one confessing to be his mistress. Doucet faces trial and hard labor if convicted.
Risky Business
Sérénade aux nuages
André Cayatte
Tino Rossi
Sylvio, a successful singer, has found a way to take a peaceful vacation, safe from his female adulators: to travel incognito. He puts up at an old castle whose landlord, Count Fabrice, a ruined nobleman, seeks a hidden treasure. Posing as the nephew of the castle gardener, Sylvio enjoys happy days and even finds the time to fall in love with Gracieuse, the count's daughter. Unfortunately for him, his impresario ends up locating him...
Song of the Clouds
Justice est faite
André Cayatte
Michel Auclair, Antoine Balpêtré
Elsa Lundenstein is accused of having murdered her lover. The jury discusses the case vividly. All members are somehow prejudiced because of personal life experience and subsequently each member reads something different into the presented facts.
Justice Is Done
Françoise ou La vie conjugale
André Cayatte
Marie-José Nat, Jacques Charrier
The story of the couple from the very first meeting to break up told from a view of a woman, Francoise. The film shares the same plot with "Jean-Marc ou La vie conjugale", that tells the same story from another perspective.
Anatomy of a Marriage: My Days with Françoise
Mourir d'aimer
André Cayatte
Annie Girardot, Bruno Pradal
A love story between a teacher, Daniele, 32 years and one of his students Gerard, 17 during the heated atmosphere of May 68. Daniele is a fiery young woman, very involved politically. Gerard's parents accuse Danièle of statutory rape and complain. Danièle is trapped and the drama begins...
To Die of Love
Il n'y a pas de fumée sans feu
André Cayatte
Annie Girardot, Mireille Darc
An election campaign becomes more interesting when anonymously published photographs depict the wife of a candidate, Dr. Peyrac, attending a sex party. Are the photographs fake or genuine ?
Where There's Smoke
Les amants de Vérone
André Cayatte
Serge Reggiani, Anouk Aimée
Angelo, a glass-blower from Murano, and Georgia Maglia, the pretty daughter of a fallen fascist magistrate, are chosen to be the stand-ins for the stars of a film version of "Romeo and Juliet" being shot on location in Venice and Verona. It is not long before they fall in love and their romance parallels that of Shakespeare's timeless heroes. Indeed their union is threatened by the schemings of Raffaele, the Maglia family's dubious tout...
The Lovers of Verona
Avant le déluge
André Cayatte
Antoine Balpêtré, Paul Bisciglia
The title of this French "reality" drama, which translates to Before the Deluge, is a play on Louis XVI's famous prognostication, "Apres moi, le deluge." Set in 1950, the film concentrates on five Parisian adolescents. Certain that the next war will herald the apocalypse, the youngster make plans to run off to a desert island and set up a new society. This, however, will require money, which is why the boys decide to pull off a "necessary" robbery. Idealism collapses in the face of cold reality, as the five youths suffer from the consequences of their actions. Avant le Deluge was one of a group of films cowritten by director Andre Cayatte and Charles Spaak which endeavored to explore the touchy social issues of the day: others in the Cayatte-Spaak canon include the euthanasia-themed Justice est Faite and the capital-punishment tract Nous sommes tous des assassins.
Before the Deluge
Le dossier noir
André Cayatte
Jean-Marc Bory, Danièle Delorme
In the 1950s, in a small provincial town, a young inexperienced judge clashes with an influential notable during an investigation into a suspicious death. His perseverance to get to the truth will cause a huge scandal.
Black Dossier
Le glaive et la balance
André Cayatte
Anthony Perkins, Jean-Claude Brialy
Three young men are suspected of kidnapping and murdering a little boy. Most likely, two of them are really involved, but one is not. All of their pasts are questionable, riddled with violence and controversy. Neither the police nor the court can decide how to solve that puzzle.
The Sword and the Balance
