Tuesday, February 28, 2017
059 - The Lower Depths, 1936, France. Dir. Jean Renoir.
In Boudu Saved from Drowning (1932), we were on the Seine River.
In A Day in the Country (1936), we were on the Loing River.
In The Lower Depths (1936), we are on the Marne River.
I wonder if Jean Renoir likes rivers.
Maybe he could make a movie called The River. That's a good idea.
Welcome to the Marne River.
Maxim Gorky wrote it as the Volga River. The national river of Russia. Europe's longest river. Flowing through the heart of Russia. Down to the Caspian Sea.
But Jean Renoir is not Russian. Maxim Gorky is Russian. Jean Renoir is French.
Write what you know. Direct what you know.
Gorky wrote what he knew. He wrote the play The Lower Depths.
Renoir directed what he knew. He directed the movie The Lower Depths.
The play premiered at the Moscow Arts Theatre in December, 1902. The Moscow Arts Theatre would go on to become the world's greatest theatre of its day.
The play was directed by the master, Constantin Stanislavski.
The play starred the master, Constantin Stanislavski.
Imagine Jean Renoir turning that play into a movie 34 years later.
No pressure.
Perhaps he was wise to reset the film in France rather than in Russia.
Jean Renoir got France's big star for this one, Jean Gabin. And Jean Renoir and Jean Gabin would continue to work together for several more films.
And Jean Renoir would give Jean Gabin some of his greatest roles. And his greatest role. We will see that in a couple days.
Jean Gabin plays Pepel, a thief who lives in a flophouse and canoodles with the landlord's wife Vassilissa. Her sister Natascha also lives there, and Pepel may be more interested in her than in Vassilissa.
Meanwhile a rich Baron is castigated for misappropriating funds entrusted to him. He seems to have a spending habit. Or more specifically, a gambling habit.
The women of society want him for his money. They attend the same functions. They watch him.
He always remains calm, whether he has won or lost at cards. If he lights his cigarette, it means he won. If he does not light it, but places it unlit in his mouth, it means he lost.
The women of society watch closely. Tonight, he places the cigarette in his mouth but does not light it. He has lost. The women will leave him alone tonight.
This time it means he has lost everything. He is in real trouble.
Back home he informs his servant that they will be getting rid of everything to try to help pay off his debts.
Pepel comes to rob him. At least the Baron cannot shoot himself. Pepel has his gun. The Baron laughs at Pepel. Go ahead and take everything you want. I have already lost it.
The two become friends. The Baron gives Pepel a bronze statue. Pepel is arrested. He claims the Baron is his friend and gave him the statue. The police do not believe him. The Baron arrives and confirms the claim. Pepel is free to go.
The Baron joins Pepel and the gang at the flophouse.
And if you are willing to suspend your disbelief, the Baron is now finally happy, being broke, because he does not have to conform to society's expectations. He can lie in the grass all day and contemplate the sky.
Oh, the good life.
Pepel finally reveals to Vassilissa that he does not love her. That breaks her heart enough. But then when she discovers he loves her younger sister, well, that does not lead to a good reaction.
The Inspector is coming to inspect the flophouse. The landlord is in trouble.
What can we do to bribe him?
What if we give him Natascha? That's it. Then he will leave us alone. The landlord and his wife Vassilissa have concocted this scheme. Never mind what Natascha thinks. Take one for the team.
The dramatic set-up will lead to a dramatic outcome. Someone will lose a fight. Someone will die. Someone will escape. Someone else will die. Someone will go free. Someone will stay.
Jean Gabin plays the role like a movie star. You never fully believe he is a thief or a beggar or in any way a desperate man.
But he fills the screen with his presence.
And he draws you in the way he draws in two sisters.
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