Directed by Julien Duvivier

Directed by Julien Duvivier

11 Episodes

Julien Duvivier was among the definitive craftsmen of classical French cinema, bringing expressive camera work, atmospheric mise-en-scène, and a darkly lyrical sensibility to often-overlooked jewels across an extraordinary array of genres. His deeply shadowed, fatalistic early sound films DAVID GOLDER and LA TÊTE D’UN HOMME anticipate the poetic-realist style that would come to define 1930s Gallic cinema, and which would find one of its fullest expressions in the intoxicatingly doom-laden, Algiers-set underworld drama PÉPÉ LE MOKO. From the elegant, wistful romance of UN CARNET DE BAL to the startlingly bleak noir pessimism of PANIQUE to the charmingly imaginative meta-comedy of LA FÊTE À HENRIETTE, Duvivier maintained a master’s touch that won him the admiration of titans like Orson Welles and Jean Renoir, who declared, “If I were an architect and I had to build a monument to the cinema, I would place a statue of Julien Duvivier at the entrance.”

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Directed by Julien Duvivier

11 Episodes

  • La fête à Henriette
    1:49:22
    La fête à Henriette
    Episode 1

    La fête à Henriette

    Episode 1

    Directed by Julien Duvivier • 1952 • France
    Starring Dany Robin, Michel Auclair, Hildegard Knef

    This enchantingly inventive comic jewel—the inspiration for the Audrey Hepburn remake PARIS WHEN IT SIZZLES—is built around a delightfully self-reflexive premise: two screenwriters, torn over whether ...

  • Panique
    1:38:44
    Panique
    Episode 2

    Panique

    Episode 2

    Directed by Julien Duvivier • 1946 • France
    Starring Michel Simon, Viviane Romance, Paul Bernard

    Proud, eccentric, and antisocial, Monsieur Hire (Michel Simon) has always kept to himself. But after a woman turns up dead in the Paris suburb where he lives, he feels drawn to a pretty young newcome...

  • The End of the Day
    1:45:09
    The End of the Day
    Episode 3

    The End of the Day

    Episode 3

    Directed by Julien Duvivier • 1939 • France
    Starring Victor Francen, Michel Simon, Louis Jouvet

    A bittersweet reflection on aging, mortality, and the memories and regrets that make up a lifetime, this affecting tragicomedy centers on a coterie of broke, washed-up actors now living in a retiremen...

  • They Were Five
    1:44:03
    They Were Five
    Episode 4

    They Were Five

    Episode 4

    Directed by Julien Duvivier • 1936 • France
    Starring Jean Gabin, Charles Vanel, Raymond Aimos

    With more money comes more problems in this spirited comedic drama, a tribute to everyman camaraderie inspired by the optimistic socialism of the French Popular Front movement. Gallic cinema icons Jean ...

  • Anna Karenina
    1:52:45
    Anna Karenina
    Episode 5

    Anna Karenina

    Episode 5

    Directed by Julien Duvivier • 1948 • United Kingdom

    He loves me, he loves me not... Anna Karenina risks her marriage, social standing, and a relationship with her son all for the illicit love of a young cavalry officer. As expected, things get complicated.

  • David Golder
    1:35:15
    David Golder
    Episode 6

    David Golder

    Episode 6

    Directed by Julien Duvivier • 1930 • France

    The first sound film by Julien Duvivier also marked his first collaboration with the marvelous actor Harry Baur. Together, they brought to life the vivid protagonist of Irène Némirovsky's best-selling first novel, an avaricious, self-interested banker ...

  • La tête d’un homme
    1:32:48
    La tête d’un homme
    Episode 7

    La tête d’un homme

    Episode 7

    Directed by Julien Duvivier • 1933 • France
    Starring Harry Baur, Valéry Inkijinoff, Alexandre Rignault

    Julien Duvivier’s meticulously crafted adaptation of a novel by legendary crime writer Georges Simenon stars Harry Baur as the author’s most indelible creation, Inspector Jules Maigret, who he...

  • Lydia
    1:39:00
    Lydia
    Episode 8

    Lydia

    Episode 8

    Directed by Julien Duvivier • 1941 • United Kingdom

    A woman spends her whole life holding out against the advances of three men in the hopes that her first love will return to her.

  • Pépé le moko
    1:35:40
    Pépé le moko
    Episode 9

    Pépé le moko

    Episode 9

    Directed by Julien Duvivier • 1937 • United States
    Starring Jean Gabin, Gabriel Gabrio, Saturnin Fabre

    The notorious Pépé le moko (Jean Gabin, in a truly iconic performance) is a wanted man: women long for him, rivals hope to destroy him, and the law is breathing down his neck at every turn. On ...

  • Un carnet de bal
    2:10:24
    Un carnet de bal
    Episode 10

    Un carnet de bal

    Episode 10

    Directed by Julien Duvivier • 1937 • France

    A rich widow, nostalgic for the lavish parties of her youth, embarks on a journey to reconnect with the many suitors who once courted her. In doing so, she sets off on a course of discovery, both of herself and of how greatly the world has changed in t...

  • Poil de carotte
    1:32:08
    Poil de carotte
    Episode 11

    Poil de carotte

    Episode 11

    Directed by Julien Duvivier • 1932 • France

    Julien Duvivier remade his own silent adaptation of a popular turn-of-the-twentieth-century novella and play for the sound era, resulting in one of his most beloved films. In a tremendously moving performance, Robert Lynen plays the neglected young Fra...

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