Casque d'Or (1952)

Three gangsters and an ex-con carpenter all fall for the same beautiful, golden-haired woman in Belle Époque France.

Director:

Jacques Becker

Writers:

Jacques Becker (scenario), Jacques Companéez (scenario)

Stars:

Simone Signoret, Serge Reggiani, Claude Dauphin

Won 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Simone Signoret	...	Marie 'Casque d'Or'
Serge Reggiani	...	Georges Manda
Claude Dauphin	...	Félix Leca
Raymond Bussières	...	Raymond
Odette Barencey	...	La mère d'Eugène
Loleh Bellon	...	Léonie Danard
Solange Certin
Daniel Mendaille	...	Le patron de la guinguette / Guinguette
Dominique Davray	...	Julie
Jacqueline Dane
Paul Barge	...	L'inspecteur Juliani / Police Insp. Giuliani
Paul Azaïs	...	Ponsard
Jean Clarieux	...	Paul
Tony Corteggiani	...	Le commissaire / Superintendent
Émile Genevois	...	Billy (as Emile Genevois)

Storyline

In an open-air dance hall, the members of Leca's gang are relaxing with their ladies. One of them, Marie, aka "Casque d'Or" (Golden Helmet) meets Manda, a carpenter. Her man Roland belongs to the jealous kind, and Leca himself has his eye on her. A story of love, death, friendship and jealousy during the Belle Epoque.

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Plot Keywords:

ex convict | black and white | black and white film | underworld | paris underworld | 

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Taglines:

The Story of a Blonde

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

18 August 1952 (USA)

Also Known As:

Casque d'Or

Filming Locations:

Quartier de la Goutte d'Or, Paris 18, Paris, France

Company Credits

Production Co:

Robert et Raymond Hakim, Spéva Films, Paris Film Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Optiphone)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A box office failure when first released, the film has since gone on to become a cult classic.

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Quotes

Bourgeois Woman #1: It's here. But this is a dive! We'll get ourselves murdered.
Bourgeois Man #1: Maybe even raped.
Bourgeois Woman #2: That might be fun.
Bourgeois Woman #3: You'd save us. I hope.
Bourgeois Man #2: Of course.

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Connections

Referenced in Národ sobe aneb Ceské more v osmnácti prílivech (2003)

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Soundtracks

Sobre Las Olas
(uncredited)
Written by Juventino Rosas
[This waltz plays in the scene where Georges Manda and Marie first meet]

User Reviews

Casque d'or :French cinema at its best!

In a poll in 1979 ,Becker's chef d'oeuvre was part of the top ten of the best French movies of all time.

It's arguably Becker's best work;he achieved a luminous movie with many unforgettable scenes : -the small boats on the river,and the pack arriving at the guinguettes,those cafes down by the river Seine which are no longer part of the landscapes.(remember Duvivier's "la belle équipe" ,1936) -all the scenes in the country where the nature seems to protect the lovers as a mother would do.Most of all,this admirable sequence when Reggiani 's sleeping :he opens his eyes and Marie's luminous beauty moves him deeply -never a director filmed Signoret as Becker did- -The scene which climaxes the opus is the one in the church.They hear the whole congregation sing the "Kyrie " in a tiny church:there's a wedding there.So Marie urges Manda to come in and they attend the ceremony.When they leave ,they learn tragic news.Now the bell is tolling for them,even if these are wedding bells.

-The final scenes between Reggiani/Manda and his old pal Bussières /Raymond display Becker's love of loyalty,manly friendship ,a subject which would come back in later works ,muted in "touchez pas au grisbi" and became an absolute pessimism in "le trou" where nobody could be trusted anymore.

-The score which Becker used in the last sequences is none other than the old French folk song "le temps des cerises" actually an organizing song,a revolutionary song ,since it was the anthem of the Commune in 1871.

"Casque d'or" is one of the jewels of the French cinema.Becker used to like the Apaches (=ruffians) ,the outcast,cause he would transfer Leblanc's Arsene Lupin adventures to the screen in 1957.A failed attempt though.But "Casque d'or" generally looked upon as Becker's peak ,hasn't aged a bit.