Simone Signoret is on great form here as the beautiful barfly who gets herself mixed up in an internecine series of relationships with a gang of petty criminals. She's supposed to be courting "Raymond" (Raymond Bussières) but isn't averse to the odd flirtation and he gets quite irked when she spends some time with the already engaged carpenter "Manda" (Serge Reggiani) - also to the chagrin of their vintner boss "Leca" (Claude Dauphin) who also has his eye on her. She falls out with her beau after this encounter despite assuring him that he's got the wrong end of the stick - and this leads her to recalibrate just what she wants for herself rather than just pleasing those around her. Meantime, the relationship between the three men is beginning to fray and for all concerned, things are starting to look just a little bit hostile - dangerous even - as the green eyed goddess of jealousy turns up to sow seeds of rancour and discord. The story itself isn't actually that great, it's the dark and gritty photography and the powerfully paced direction from Jacques Becker (who also adapted the screenplay) that gives it more character and allows Signoret to shine here. Her persona is flawed and actually not that likeable, but somehow I still felt like I was bothered about what happened to her. I can't say I was remotely fussed about her admirers, though - and the last few scenes felt quite suitable, if a touch brutal, to me. It's also worth factoring in the impact of the Van Parys score - that also adds a seaminess to the whole thing and though I can't say it's enjoyable, per se, it's a cracking piece of drama.
"Night Shift" follows 18-year-old Cheryl and best friend Darcy as they waste away the Summer of ’85 waiting tables at the only diner in their middle of nowhere Oregon town. Suffocated by small-town conservatism and her sexist high school reputation, Cheryl longs for the day that she can finally ditch Myrtlewood and her vengeful ex, Scottie, for good. But after falling victim to a mysterious late-night animal attack, Cheryl undergoes a strange transformation that pushes her friendship with Darcy to the brink and pushes her to bite back against her tormentors once & for all.
A thirteen-year-old French girl deals with moving to a new city and school in Paris, while at the same time her parents are getting a divorce.
A young French teenage girl after moving to a new city falls in love with a boy and is thinking of having sex with him because her girlfriends have already done it.
At a tiny Parisian café, the adorable yet painfully shy Amélie accidentally discovers a gift for helping others. Soon Amelie is spending her days as a matchmaker, guardian angel, and all-around do-gooder. But when she bumps into a handsome stranger, will she find the courage to become the star of her very own love story?
Thief Gaston Monescu and pickpocket Lily are partners in crime and love. Working for perfume company executive Mariette Colet, the two crooks decide to combine their criminal talents to rob their employer. Under the alias of Monsieur Laval, Gaston uses his position as Mariette's personal secretary to become closer to her. However, he takes things too far when he actually falls in love with Mariette, and has to choose between her and Lily.
In a run-down South American town, four men are paid to drive trucks loaded with nitroglycerin into the jungle through to the oil field. Friendships are tested and rivalries develop as they embark upon the perilous journey.
Paradise Found is a biography about the painter Paul Gauguin. Focusing on his personal conflict between citizen life and his family life and the art scene in Frane. In an incredible imagery montage Gauguin manages to make a successful living in the South Pacific, while being in opposition to France.
When Martin, a former GDR citizen, is released from jail, he lately becomes confronted with the consequences of the German re-unification.
Prim professor Immanuel Rath finds some of his students ogling racy photos of cabaret performer Lola Lola and visits a local club, The Blue Angel, in an attempt to catch them there. Seeing Lola perform, the teacher is filled with lust, eventually resigning his position at the school to marry the young woman. However, his marriage to a coquette - whose job is to entice men - proves to be more difficult than Rath imagined.
Career criminal Johnny Clay recruits a sharpshooter, a crooked police officer, a bartender and a betting teller named George, among others, for one last job before he goes straight and gets married. But when George tells his restless wife about the scheme to steal millions from the racetrack where he works, she hatches a plot of her own.
The third in a series of films featuring François Truffaut's alter-ego, Antoine Doinel, the story resumes with Antoine being discharged from military service. His sweetheart Christine's father lands Antoine a job as a security guard, which he promptly loses. Stumbling into a position assisting a private detective, Antoine falls for his employers' seductive wife, Fabienne, and finds that he must choose between the older woman and Christine.