Biography: life and films
Jean Rochefort was born in Paris, France, on 29th April 1930. He grew up in Vincennes, in the eastern suburbs of Paris. Having studied acting at the Centre for Dramatic Art in Paris, he enrolled in the Conservatoire, France's leading drama school, where he first met Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jean-Pierre Marielle. Having served his military service in 1953, he joined the Grenier Hussenot theatre company, where he stayed for seven years. Rochefort made his film debut in 1956, in a bit part in Georges Lampin's Rencontre à Paris. His first substantial screen role was in Philippe de Broca's historical romp Cartouche (1962), in which he played alongside Jean-Paul Belmondo, who was fast becoming France's biggest film star. Over the next decade, Rochefort accepted supporting roles in a veritable mixed bag of films, which ranged from the ever-popular Angélique films to the lively Yves Montand comedy Le Diable par la queue (1969) via the forgettable sci-fi oddity Ne jouez pas avec les Martiens (1967).
By the 1970s, Jean Rochefort had become one of France's most recognisable and prolific actors. Now a star in his own right, he featured in some of the decade's most successful mainstream films, including Yves Robert's popular comedies Le Grand Blond avec une chaussure noire (1972) and Un éléphant ça trompe énormément (1976). He also appeared in several auteur films and worked with some of France's most distinguished directors, including Bertrand Tavernier (L'Horloger de Saint-Paul, 1974), Claude Chabrol (Les Innocents aux mains sales, 1975) and Bertrand Blier (Calmos, 1976). His performance in Tavernier's Que la fête commence... (1975) won him a Best Supporting Actor César and he subsequently took the Best Actor César for his role in Pierre Schoendoerffer's Le Crabe-Tambour (1977). Other notable films include: Régis Wargnier's Je suis le seigneur du château (1989), Yves Robert's Le Château de ma mère (1990) and Patrice Leconte's Le Mari de la coiffeuse (1990).
In 2000, Jean Rochefort was offered his dream role, that of Don Quixote, in Terry Gilliam's The Man Who Killed Don Quixote. Unfortunately, the actor sustained a serious injury one week into the shoot and the production was hastily aborted. The story of the doomed project is recounted in the 2002 documentary Lost in La Mancha. More recently, Rochefort has starred opposite Charlotte Rampling in Antoine de Caunes' feisty rom-com Désaccord parfait (2006) and has made guest appearances in numerous films, including Guillaume Canet's hit thriller Ne le dis à personne (2006) and the British comedy Mr. Bean's Holiday (2007).
Rochefort's unique combination of talent and charisma has made him one of France's most sought-after actors and he has lent his services to an astonishing diversity of films. Whether he is in off-the-wall black comedies like Philippe Haïm's Barracuda (1997) or complex existential dramas like Patrice Leconte's L'Homme du train (2002), Rochefort never fails to turn in a convincing and nuanced performance, holding us in his thrall like a practitioner of the black arts. He has also turned his hand to filmmaking. In the early 1970s, he made two documentary shorts, Rosine (1973) and T'es fou, Marcel? (1974), the latter an irreverent tribute to the actor Marcel Dalio. In 2010, he co-directed a feature-length documentary, Cavaliers seuls, which came out of his lifelong passion for horse riding (presently, he manages his own stud farm). In 1999, Rochefort was awarded an honorary César for his lifetime contribution to French cinema. Now in his eighties, he is still very active and has no difficulty attracting offers of work. It is with anticipation that we look forward to his appearance in Laurent Tirard's Astérix et Obélix: Au Service de Sa Majesté (2012).
© James Travers 2012
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Filmography
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