La femme du boulanger (1938)

Director:

Marcel Pagnol

Writer:

Jean Giono (novel)

Release Date:

26 February 1940 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

In this little Provencal village, a new baker, Aimable, settles down. His wife Aurelie is beautiful and much younger than he...

Plot Keywords:

Bread | Shepherd | Baker | Village | Mayor

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Raimu	...	Aimable Castanier
Ginette Leclerc	...	Aurélie Castanier
Fernand Charpin	...	Le marquis Castan de Venelles (as Charpin)
Robert Vattier	...	Le curé
Charles Blavette	...	Antonin
Robert Bassac	...	L'instituteur
Marcel Maupi	...	Barnabé (as Maupi)
Alida Rouffe	...	Céleste, la bonne du curé
Odette Roger	...	Miette, la femme d'Antonin
Yvette Fournier	...	Hermine
Maximilienne	...	Melle Angèle (as Maximilienne Max)
Charblay	...	Arsène, le boucher
Julien Maffre	...	Pétugue (as Maffre)
Adrien Legros	...	Barthelemy
Jean Castan	...	Esprit, un berger

Also Known As:

The Baker's Wife (USA)

Runtime:

133 min | West Germany:97 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Not Rated | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Le Castellet, Var, France

Company:

Les Films Marcel Pagnol

Trivia:

The film is mentioned in the novel 'Catcher In The Rye' by J.D. Salinger.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Les cent et une nuits de Simon Cinéma (1995)

Pagnol and Kazan

In his autobiography, Elia Kazan notes that his classic "Baby Doll" bears a resemblance to the films of Marcel Pagnol, whom he admired. This similarity of style is indeed uncanny, and "the Baker's Wife" is perhaps BD's closest cousin. So steeped in culture, so guileless in their presentation, both films irresistibly charm, although BD, with its revenge theme, is a much darker work. Pure entertainment, their message is nonetheless thoughtful and poignant. Human folly at its best. The stark cinematography, the outdoor locations, the cartoonish characters, the choppy editing that somehow suits the material. These qualities permeate the films. And, incidentally, both feature a nubile young wife lusting after a handsome stranger. Not surprisingly, Pagnol and Kazan hailed from the stage. It is ironic that the erotic "Baby Doll" is sometimes likened to a European "art" film, for "the Baker's Wife" is anything but an "art" film! However, it is a great work of art. Raimu, as the cuckolded husband, contributes one of the all-time great performances. Like Chaplin, he is of tragic character-simultaneously hilarious and heartbreaking.

I purchased a VHS copy of "the Baker's Wife" years ago directly from Interama Video Classics, and the picture quality is fine, especially considering the age of the film. The subtitles are clear, bright, and very legible (a sticker on the cover states "New subtitles").

Boris Kaufman, the fine cinematographer of "Baby Doll", also photographed Vigo's "L'Atalante", another classic French film of the '30s.