Journeys Through French Cinema

Episode Synopsis

Tavernier dissects the importance of music in French Cinema with palpable enthusiasm, highlighting French actors who came from music hall backgrounds (Jean Gabin, Magali Noël, and Jean Gabin, among others), and the oft-overlooked contributions of directors to the process of songwriting itself. Surveying the work of René Clair, Sacha Guitry, Jean Boyer and more, Tavernier treats us to a feast of joyous clips from beloved classics like Agnès Varda’s CLEO FROM 5 TO 7, Louis Malle’s VIVA MARIA!, and Jacques Demy’s THE YOUNG GIRLS OF ROQUEFORT, before honing in to focus on prolific director Julien Duvivier, whom he admires for his austere formal rigor, technical precision, contributions to songwriting, and creative use of sound.