Manon

Even after listening to director, Clouzot talking about the making of this film, it is difficult to understand quite why he made it. Loosely based upon an 18th century tale this has been changed around to fit a 2nd World War situation and must have something to do with the virtual ban he had after the accusations following the release of his brilliant Le Corbeau. In any event, this is a mess and for a man of intellect and literary allusions, a serious misjudgment. Even the structure with the constant flashbacks is unhelpful but the central tale of the young girl out for money and fun and men, leaves the central male and intended saviour looking more like a misguided young fool. The final scenes in the desert are as if from another movie with beautifully shot skies and lines of escaped but doomed Jewish refugees. Almost dreamlike the finale has a surreal quality to it and as the inevitable ending looms so the swirling sands seem destined to envelope both our so called hero and heroine.

1. The Third Man 2. White Heat 3. The Heiress 4. Kind Hearts and Coronets 5. A Letter to Three Wives 6. Intruder in the Dust 7. (Banshun) Late spring 8. Criss Cross 9. The Fountainhead 10. Occupe-toi d'Amélie..! 11. The Great Sinner 12. The Set-Up 13. All the King's Men 14. Stray dog (Nora inu) 15. Thieves' Highway 16. Adam's Rib 17. Riso amaro 18. On the Town 19. Manon 20. Le silence de la mer

Manon is directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot and Clouzot co-adapts the screenplay with Jean Ferry from the novel "Manon Lescaut" written by Abbe Prevost. It stars Serge Reggiani, Michel Auclair, Cécile Aubry, Andrex and Raymond Souplex. Music is by Paul Misraki and cinematography by Armand Thirard.

Clouzot, still smarting from the hysterical fall out from his brilliant "Le Corbeau", realigns the Prevost novel to post war France right after the liberation from Nazi occupancy. With his muse set alight, Clouzot set about putting on film the dark venality of the human condition, to show that post war France was hardly a joyous new world. Right here with "Manon" he lets rip, thrusting to the forefront black market racketeers and prostitution, people who inhabit a morally corrupt city in serious decay.

The central narrative concerns Robert Dégrieux (Auclair a splendid dope) and Manon Lescaut (Aubry cunningly adorable), where the former quickly falls in love with the latter and finds himself spun into a vortex of mistrust and misjudgements, becoming more compulsive and foolish by the day. The pursuit of a dream life by both Robert and Manon, runs concurrently with that of the Jewish people attempting to reach Israel, it is here where Clouzot is building towards a quite outstanding last quarter of film.

As the pic pulses away with film noir character beats, these are matched by the visual astuteness of the director and his cinematographer, who use high contrasts and canted angles for narrative embracement. A number of striking sequences grab the attention, be it the portentous meeting of Robert and Manon in the war torn ruins of a church (hello Christ imagery), or a mass trek through the desert beneath ominously low night time clouds, the makers ensure the mood is constantly foreboding.

Superbly performed by the cast, "Manon" is further evidence of what a true great of cinema Clouzot was. 9/10

I have seen this film a long time ago, perhaps in 1958 at Prague Film School (FAMU). It still haunts me, unlike many, many other entirely forgettable "movies", I would love to have a copy. The film has an essence of what my generation lived, what my children have forgotten, and what we are powerless to remind them of.

I can imagine that Clouzot took on the task of filming this classic with a lot of trepidation: it's just not his kind of story. A picaresque novel of 1734, with aristocratic ideals in conflict with a sordid story was not going to be well-handled by a director who pioneered the noir form in France. His forte was telling a gritty story with characters stretched to the breaking point (as Montand and Vanel were in Wages of Fear). It required a great deal of updating and tinkering with the basic story before Clouzot could feel comfortable with it.

Cecile Aubry does not impress me with her acting skills; she mainly pouts and sighs her way through the picture. How much more could Danielle Darrieux or Micheline Presle have brought to the film! Michel Auclair was a superb leading man who made many films, this is one of his best (see him also in Maigret et l'affaire Saint-Fiacre). Here he manages to convey desire, murderous rage and exasperation with Manon's whims. Dora Doll and her big toothy grin, as well as Gabrielle Dorziat as the prim madam of Manon's brothel were good, but Serge Reggiani as Manon's brother stole every scene he was in.