Directed by Jacques Rozier • 2001 • France
Starring Jean Lefebvre, Lili Vonderfeld, Yves Afonso
Jacques Rozier’s final film is a joyful compendium of his major themes and strategies as well as one of the funniest depictions of the theater ever committed to celluloid. When a director (Mike Marshall) decides—out of superstition—to overhaul his play after a successful six-month run, he unwittingly instigates changes that appear to doom the production. Enter, by pure coincidence, Gaston (Jean Lefebvre), a friend of the star, Fifi (Lydia Feld as Lili Vonderfeld), and the possessor of a near-perfect memory that allows him to quickly assume one of the major roles. Everything seems to fall into place until Gaston gambles his advance to raise money for his own struggling theatrical company, loses his recall abilities, and becomes the target of revenge by the man he replaced onstage (Yves Afonso). Filled to the brim with punning wordplay, theatrical allusions, and the delicious chaos of backstage maneuvering, Fifi Martingale is perhaps Rozier’s finest comedic take on the wild digressions and nick-of-time improvisations that make up both art and life.
Up Next in Directed by Jacques Rozier
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Blue Jeans
Directed by Jacques Rozier • 1958 • France
Starring Rene Ferro, Francis De Peretti, Elisabeth KlarThis breezy portrait of two Vespa-riding seventeen-year-old boys cruising the Rivera in search of girls captures the spirit of callow youth and the scenic splendors of the Mediterranean summertime.
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Le parti des choses: Bardot et Godard
Directed by Jacques Rozier • 1964 • France
Jacques Rozier offers a behind-the-scenes look at Jean-Luc Godard, Brigitte Bardot, Michel Piccoli, and Fritz Lang during the filming of Godard’s French New Wave landmark CONTEMPT on the island of Capri.
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Paparazzi
Directed by Jacques Rozier • 1964 • France
One of two documentaries Jacques Rozier made chronicling the making of Jean-Luc Godard’s CONTEMPT (along with LE PARTI DES CHOSES), PAPARAZZI focuses on the intense media frenzy that accompanied star Brigitte Bardot’s every move, offering a revealing lo...
