One evening in 1968, Claude Sautet finds a script by Jean-Loup Dabadie, accompanied by a message from under the door of his house: “My little Claude, that’s how I wrote it, I’m looking for a director and only you can recommend me. » Adaptation from this book things of life, by Paul Guimard. Finding himself in the main character shared by the two women, the director decides to take over the script. It will be a great way for him to get back behind the camera after his failure. gun on the left (1965). The movie will now begin with a legendary scene: An Alfa Romeo driving too fast on a rural road crashes into a truck. At the wheel, wealthy forty-year-old Pierre sees his life slip by as his sports coupe crashes into deadly barrels. Michel Piccoli will take on the role of Pierre, while Lea Massari will take on the role of his wife, Catherine. For his mistress, Hélène, Sautet has no idea. We’re talking to her about Romy Schneider, who she doesn’t know but has a somewhat silly image of Sissi in her mind.
CHARACTER ACTRESS
He changed his mind when he met her at the Boulogne-Billancourt studios in 1968: “ I felt that he was full of strength and life, I immediately wanted to shoot with him. He told me, “Listen, one thing you can be sure of about me is that I am photogenic. There is nothing to worry about,” he said. “The actress’ wit and sensitivity blew the screen. Her unpolished beauty, red like Hélène’s dress, impetuous and beautiful as the sun, illuminates things in life that return to the memory of Pierre lying among the poppies. He still thinks: should he put his life, his loves in order? How do we manage to choose one life or the other when we are a middle-aged husband, a family man, a faithful friend? Divorce? Marry Helen? The complicity between Romy Schneider and Michel Piccoli, magnificent in their fragility, stunned Claude Sautet: ” It was an agreement without competition, without mutual aid. A delicate and wonderful relationship. But it is Romy who subdues him, and vice versa: Of course he had an absolute character. I couldn’t take my eyes off him while filming. Otherwise, he would immediately say to me, “We’re doing this again, you didn’t look at me.” Published in 1970, The Things of Life was Claude Sautet’s first major public success.
The film begins the cycle of candid contemporary portraits (César and Rosalie, Une histoire simple…) that will become his trademark. The director’s wife, Graziella Sautet, elaborates on their loving friendship: ” He understood with Romy that women are brave and lively people. He gave her a portrait of a woman that impressed him and which he kept in all his other films. And Sautet spawned a tremendous actress.
The Things of Life: Sunday, April 2 at 9:10 C8
ISABEL MAGNIER
Source: Programme Television
Joseph Fearn is an entertainment and television aficionado who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a keen eye for what’s hot in the world of TV, Joseph keeps his readers informed about the latest trends and must-see shows.
