Armand Thirard

Set within the vibrant dancehalls and historic crime corridors of 1940s Paris, a singer with "stars in her eyes" ignores the protest of her covetous husband and pursues a meeting with a lecherous movie financier. When her husband attempts to crash the rendevous, murder ensues. Enter the detective, whose seasoned instincts lead him down a circuitous path of alibis.

François' mother, Madame Lepic, hates him and she nicknames him "Poil de Carotte" (carrot hair). His father is more interested in politics and hunting than he is in him. In spite of the affection of his godfather and his friend Mathilde, whom he calls his "fiancé," young Poil de Carotte contemplates suicide. On a particularly difficult day, he attempts to hang himself. Mr. Lepic saves his life just in time and understands he is partly to blame.

In a small, isolated, hot and dusty Central American village, there's only one thing to do: dream of getting out. An opportunity for escape presents itself, but only to those with nerves of steel. An American oil company has offered to pay big money to get two trucks loaded with nitroglycerin over to a well fire. The catch is that the unpaved terrain contains enough bumps and crags to make the unstable material explode, instantly killing the driver....

Though little known outside of France, Jean Grémillon was a consummate filmmaker from his country's golden age. This set showcases three of his richest films, which were made during the German occupation of France. These character-driven dramas are humane, entertaining, and technically brilliant, and prove Grémillon to be one of cinema's true hidden masters. Remorques. Gabin plays Laurent, a salvage-boat captain who rescues a merchant vessel from...