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 | underworld | paris underworld | tragedy | tragic love story | 

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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

Did You Know?

Trivia

Amelie Helie, the real-life source of the story and one of Paris' most notorious prostitutes, sought to exploit the events that inspired the film by playing herself in a stage musical called "Casque d'Or et les Apaches". It was swiftly shut down, however, by the city's police chief, fearing it might inflame further gang warfare.

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Quotes

Félix Leca: So? What do we tell Roland?
Marie 'Casque d'Or': Tell him to drop dead.
Roland Dupuis: [enters from other room] Say that again? Well, say it again.
Félix Leca: Will you leave us alone?
Roland Dupuis: I heard the bitch!

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Connections

Referenced in From the Orient with Fury (1965)

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Soundtracks

Sobre las olas
(uncredited)
Music by Juventino Rosas
[This waltz plays in the scene where Georges Manda and Marie first meet]

User Reviews

About passion and its consequences

After being released from prison where he served five years for an undisclosed crime, Georges Manda (Serge Reggiani), a soft-looking, taciturn man with a handlebar moustache, becomes a hard working carpenter, determined to go straight. When Raymond (Raymond Bussieres), a fellow gang member with whom he served time in prison, introduces him to Marie (Simone Signoret) at a dance, however, the solid foundation he was trying to build begins to come unglued. Signoret, one of the classiest and most elegant actresses, is strikingly irresistible as the moll of a suave gang leader in Jacques Becker's 1952 masterpiece Casque D'or. Considered a failure when it first opened but, after receiving critical acclaim in New York, the film developed a wider audience in France and has now become a classic, newly restored on a Criterion DVD.

Set in Paris in the 1890s and based on actual police accounts, Casque D'or is not an arid period piece or costume drama, but a rich, vibrant, and lovingly evocative work that successfully recreates the ambiance of Paris at the turn of the century. Unlike Melville's Le Samourai which was filmed in near darkness to capture the sullen milieu of the underworld, Becker bathes his film in a dazzling poetic light that belies the darkness of its theme and some scenes have been compared to an impressionist painting. Marie is being "kept" by Roland (William Sabatier), a volatile and jealous dandy and is also sought after by the crime boss Felix Leca (Claude Dauphin). Manda and Marie fall in love but soon Manda runs afoul of the law after killing the jealous Roland in a fight. Leca seizes on this opportunity to remove Manda from the picture by framing his closest friend but doesn't count on Manda's dedication to doing what is right.

Despite being about the criminal element, there is little violence in Casque D'or and it is more of an moody romance than a crime drama, perhaps accounting for its initial failure at the box office. The most brilliantly realized sequence takes place at a countryside retreat where Manda and Marie go for a few hours of happiness together before the inevitable denouement. Casque D'or is a film about friendship, loyalty, and, most of all, about passion and its consequences. When Marie hears wedding bells and drags Manda into a church, all he can say is "not now", but his expression suggests that he knows that their love will be a dream that fades into dawn.

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