Stavisky... (1974)

Director:

Alain Resnais

Writer:

Jorge Semprún (writer)

Release Date:

15 May 1974 (France)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Plot:

Irrestisible charm and talent helps Serge Alexandre alias Stavisky, small-time swindler, to make friends...

Awards:

2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Jean-Paul Belmondo	...	Serge Alexandre Stavisky
François Périer	...	Albert Borelli
Anny Duperey	...	Arlette
Michael Lonsdale	...	Docteur Mézy
Roberto Bisacco	...	Juan Montalvo de Montalbon
Claude Rich	...	Inspecteur Bonny
Charles Boyer	...	Le baron Jean Raoul
Pierre Vernier	...	Me Pierre Grammont
Marcel Cuvelier	...	Inspecteur Boussaud
Van Doude	...	Inspecteur principal Gardet
Jacques Spiesser	...	Michel Grandville
Michel Beaune	...	Le journaliste maître-chanteur
Maurice Jacquemont	...	Gauthier
Silvia Badescu	...	Erna Wolfgang
Jacques Eyser	...	Véricourt

Also Known As:

L'empire d'Alexandre
Stavisky, il grande truffatore (Italy)

Runtime:

120 min

Country:

France | Italy

Language:

French | English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | USA:PG

Company:

Cerito Films

Trivia:

On February 7, 1934, the French Ministry of the Interior and the Paris Police Prefecture banned the showing of newsreel footage of the previous day's mêlée by right-wing royalists, war veterans and members of the anti-semitic, nationalist, anti-republican Action Francaise movement, who rioted to bring down the Daladier government over the Stavisky affair. The riots left 17 dead and 116 wounded. One Parisian cinema, Reginald Ford's Cineac Theatre, defied the censorship to show footage of the riots by the reactionary forces, which had been caught on-camera by French and foreign newsreel photographers.

Movie Connections:

Version of Stolen Holiday (1937)

Current history makes Stavisky a must see

If it were not for the stylistic excesses of Resnais, the epitome of auteur directors, this movie would rank with Citizen Kane and The Godfather. Too often, the cinematic tricks interfere with a powerful narrative, and distract from otherwise magnificent qualities of Stavisky, the movie. Seldom, has an acting ensemble delivered such consistent excellence. Belmondo, in the key leading role, delivers his character's development with perfection in every scene. Boyer's performance meets and surpasses all the great roles of his career. This is a movie that can only grow in importance with time.

Viewed during the financial crises of 2009, created with stunning derivative manipulations that parallel the voucher schemes of Stavisky, one sees history repeated. It is depressing to be reminded how we have ignored the lesson of history, and now we must live through the aftermath of financial corruption on a world wide scale that makes Stavisky's crimes pale in comparison.