A successful manufacturer of a leading brand of insecticide, Émile
Durand cannot believe his ears when he discovers that his ungrateful son
Gérard has run away from home to join a travelling theatre company.
It seems that the silly boy has fallen head over heels in love with Suzy,
an acrobat in the happy troupe, and has opted to follow her profession as
an itinerant performer, knowing full well that his father will never allow
the young lovers to marry.
Glad to have freed himself from the yoke of bourgeois conformity, Gérard
has no difficulty getting himself accepted into the company as they travel
from town to town by whatever means they can, never failing to find an audience
wherever they end up. Durand's wife cannot bear to see the present
rift between her husband and her son continue, so she goes after Gérard
and, before she knows it, she is given a part in the troupe's next production.
As for the unforgiving Émile, he too is inexplicably drawn towards
the life of the travelling player...
Cast: Jean Richard (César Beauminet),
Roger Pierre (Gérard Durand),
Louis de Funès (Émile Durand),
Nicky Valor (Céline Valmont),
Danièle Lebrun (Suzy Beauminet),
Annick Tanguy (Fanny),
Robert Rollis (Ernest),
Max Desrau (Pépé),
Billy Bourbon (Albert Albert),
Madeleine Barbulée (Adélaïde Benoît),
Jane Helly (Marguerite Durand),
Christian Marin (Léon),
André Dalibert (M. Grandjean),
Pierre Mirat (Un paysan),
Alain Roulleau (Le petit Robert),
Charles Bouillaud (Le maire de la ville et auteur de la pièce),
Albert Michel (Le garde-champêtre),
Sylvain (Le concierge),
Louisette Rousseau (La concierge),
Jean Berton (M. Laporte, l'huissier)
Country: France
Language: French
Support: Black and White
Runtime: 82 min
The very best of the French New Wave
A wave of fresh talent in the late 1950s, early 1960s brought about a dramatic renaissance in French cinema, placing the auteur at the core of France's 7th art.
It was American film noir and pulp fiction that kick-started the craze for thrillers in 1950s France and made it one of the most popular and enduring genres.