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Cocteau
Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau (, , ; 5 July 1889 – 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, filmmaker, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost creatives of the surrealist, avant-garde, and Dadaist movements; and one of the most influential figures in early 20th-century art as a whole. The ''National Observer'' suggested that, “of the artistic generation whose daring gave birth to Twentieth Century Art, Cocteau came closest to being a Renaissance man.” He is best known for his novels ''Le Grand Écart'' (1923), ''Le Livre blanc'' (1928), and '' Les Enfants Terribles'' (1929); the stage plays ''La Voix Humaine'' (1930), '' La Machine Infernale'' (1934), ''Les Parents terribles'' (1938), '' La Machine à écrire'' (1941), and ''L'Aigle à deux têtes'' (1946); and the films ''The Blood of a Poet'' (1930), ''Les Parents Terribles'' (1948), ''Beauty and the Beast'' (1946), ''Orpheus'' (1950), and ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jean Marais
Jean-Alfred Villain-Marais (11 December 1913 – 8 November 1998), known professionally as Jean Marais (), was a French actor, film director, theatre director, painter, sculptor, visual artist, writer and photographer. He performed in over 100 films and was the muse and lover of acclaimed director Jean Cocteau. In 1996, he was awarded the French Legion of Honor for his contributions to French Cinema. Early life A native of Cherbourg, France, Marais was a son of Alfred Emmanuel Victor Paul Villain-Marais and his wife, the former Aline Marie Louise Vassord.Trambouze, ClaudeJean Marais : Un Homme aux milles ''PORTRAIT'' (in French). Retrieved 11 July 2015. Career Early films Marais' first role was an uncredited bit in '' Song of the Streets'' (1933) and he was in '' Etienne'' (1933). Filmmaker Marcel L'Herbier put him in '' The Sparrowhawk'' (1933) with Charles Boyer; '' The Scandal'' (1934), with Gaby Morlay; ''Happiness'' (1934) again with Boyer, '' The Venturer'' (1934) wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Les Parents Terribles (film)
''Les Parents terribles'' is a 1948 film adaptation directed by Jean Cocteau from his own stage play ''Les Parents terribles''. Cocteau used the same cast who had appeared in a successful stage revival of the play in Paris in 1946. The film has sometimes been known by the English title ''The Storm Within''. Background Cocteau's stage play ''Les Parents terribles'' was first produced in Paris in 1938, but its run suffered from a number of disruptions, first from censorship and then the outbreak of war. In 1946 it was revived in a production which brought together several of the actors for whom Cocteau had originally conceived their roles, notably Yvonne de Bray, Gabrielle Dorziat, and Jean Marais. Cocteau said that he wanted to film his play for three reasons. "First, to record the performances of incomparable actors; second, mingle with them myself and look them full in the face instead of seeing them at a distance on the stage. I wanted to put my eye to the keyhole and surprise th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Le Livre Blanc
''The White Paper'' ( French: , alternatively ''The White Book'') is a 1928 French novel by Jean Cocteau. It is a pederastic semi-autobiographical novel about Cocteau's life, and centers on an unnamed protagonist developing his sexual identity by having sex with men and watching men have sex with each other. Cocteau never placed his name on the book, but he provided illustrations for some of its editions. Background and publication Jean Cocteau, a French novelist, stayed with his pupil in the south of France for the latter part of 1927. When staying in Chablis later that year, he probably finished writing ''White Paper'', and Desbordes continued writing his debut novel, ''J'Adore''. The details of the novel's writing process are unclear, and Cocteau never claimed the novel as his own. He initially did not want it to be released, writing on his 1928 manuscript: "Not to be published. It should only be published after my death or anonymously in a deluxe edition limited to fi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beauty And The Beast (1946 Film)
''Beauty and the Beast'' (french: La Belle et la Bête – also the UK title) is a 1946 French romantic fantasy film directed by French poet and filmmaker Jean Cocteau. Starring Josette Day as Belle and Jean Marais as the Beast, it is an adaptation of the 1757 story ''Beauty and the Beast'', written by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont and published as part of a fairy tale anthology. The plot of Cocteau's film revolves around Belle's father who is sentenced to death for picking a rose from Beast's garden. Belle offers to go back to the Beast in her father's place. Beast falls in love with her and proposes marriage on a nightly basis which she refuses. Belle eventually becomes more drawn to Beast, who tests her by letting her return home to her family and telling her that if she doesn't return to him within a week, he will die of grief. ''Beauty and the Beast'' is now recognized as a classic of French cinema. Plot While scrubbing the floor at home, Belle (Josette Day) is inter ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Les Parents Terribles
''Les Parents terribles'' is a 1938 French play written by Jean Cocteau. Despite initial problems with censorship, it was revived on the French stage several times after its original production, and in 1948 a film adaptation directed by Cocteau was released. English-language versions have been produced under various titles including ''Intimate Relations'' and ''Indiscretions''. History In January 1938 Cocteau wanted to concentrate on writing a new play and left Paris to stay in Montargis, accompanied by Jean Marais. A concentrated period of work led to the completion of the text by the end of February. Its title was then ''La Roulotte ou la maison dans la lune'' ("The caravan or the house on the moon"), referring to the negligent way of life of certain characters, and the unrealistic attitude of others. Cocteau intended the five roles for specific actors: Yvonne de Bray, Madeleine Ozeray, Gabrielle Dorziat, Louis Jouvet and Jean Marais (and the first two of these lent their fi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
L'Aigle à Deux Têtes
''L'Aigle à deux têtes'' is a French play in three acts by Jean Cocteau, written in 1943 and first performed in 1946. It is known variously in English as ''The Eagle with Two Heads'', ''The Eagle Has Two Heads'', ''The Two-Headed Eagle'', ''The Double-Headed Eagle'', and ''Eagle Rampant''. The title refers to the double-headed eagle of heraldry. Cocteau also directed a film of his play which appeared in 1948. Cocteau said that he took his inspiration for the play from the separate stories of Ludwig II of Bavaria and of the Empress Elisabeth of Austria. Ludwig was found drowned in Lake Starnberg in Bavaria in circumstances which have never been satisfactorily explained. Elisabeth was stabbed in the heart by an assassin while out walking in Geneva. For his portrait of the Queen, Cocteau drew upon the portrait of Elisabeth given by Remy de Gourmont in his ''Promenades littéraires''. He was also concerned to create characters which called for a grand style of acting in a tradit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Testament Of Orpheus
''Testament of Orpheus'' (french: Le testament d'Orphée) is a 1960 black-and-white film with a few seconds of color film spliced in. Directed by and starring Jean Cocteau, who plays himself as an 18th-century poet, the film includes cameo appearances by Pablo Picasso, Jean Marais, Charles Aznavour, Jean-Pierre Leaud, and Yul Brynner. It is considered the final part of ''The Orphic Trilogy'', following ''The Blood of a Poet'' (1930) and '' Orphée'' (1950). One critic described it as a "wry, self-conscious re-examination of a lifetime's obsessions" with Cocteau placing himself at the center of the mythological and fictional world he spun throughout his books, films, plays and paintings. The film includes numerous instances of "double takes", including one scene where Cocteau, walking past himself, looks back to see himself in what was described by one scholar as "a retrospective on the Cocteau ''œuvre''". ''The New York Times'' called it "self-serving", noting that the pretension ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Blood Of A Poet
''The Blood of a Poet'' (french: Le sang d'un poète) (1930) is an avant-garde film directed by Jean Cocteau, financed by Charles de Noailles and starring Enrique Riveros, a Chilean actor who had a successful career in European films. Photographer Lee Miller made her only film appearance in this movie, which features an appearance by the famed aerialist Barbette. It is the first part of ''The Orphic Trilogy'', which is continued in '' Orphée'' (1950) and concludes with ''Testament of Orpheus'' (1960). Plot ''The Blood of a Poet'' is divided into four sections. In section one, an artist sketches a face and is startled when its mouth starts moving. He rubs out the mouth, only to discover that it has transferred to the palm of his hand. After experimenting with the hand for a while and falling asleep, the artist awakens and places the mouth over the mouth of a female statue. In section two, the statue speaks to the artist, cajoling him into passing through a mirror. The mirror tr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Human Voice
''The Human Voice'' (french: La voix humaine) is a monodrama first staged at the Comédie-Française in 1930, written two years earlier by Jean Cocteau. It is set in Paris, where a still-quite-young woman is on the phone with her lover of the last five years. He is to marry another woman the next day, which causes her to despair. The monologue triggers the woman's crippling depression. About the play Cocteau's experiments with the human voice peaked with his play ''La voix humaine''. The story involves one woman on stage speaking on the telephone with her (invisible and inaudible) departing lover, who is leaving her to marry another woman. The telephone proved to be the perfect prop for Cocteau to explore his ideas, feelings, and "algebra" concerning human needs and realities in communication. Cocteau acknowledged in the introduction to the script that the play was motivated, in part, by complaints from his actresses that his works were too writer/director-dominated and gave th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orpheus (film)
''Orpheus'' (french: Orphée; also the title used in the UK) is a 1950 French film directed by Jean Cocteau and starring Jean Marais. It is the central part of Cocteau's ''Orphic Trilogy'', which consists of ''The Blood of a Poet'' (1930), ''Orpheus'' (1950), and ''Testament of Orpheus'' (1960). Plot Set in contemporary Paris, the story of the film is a variation of the classic Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. The picture begins with Orpheus (Marais), a famous poet, visiting the Café des Poètes. At the same time, a Princess (Casares) and Cégeste (), a handsome young poet whom she supports, arrive. The drunken Cégeste starts a brawl. When the police arrive and attempt to take Cégeste into custody, he breaks free and flees, only to be run down by two motorcycle riders. The Princess has the police place Cégeste into her car in order to "transport him to the hospital". She also orders Orpheus into the car in order to act as a witness. Once in the car, Orpheus discovers Céges ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Raymond Radiguet
Raymond Radiguet (18 June 1903 – 12 December 1923) was a French novelist and poet whose two novels were noted for their explicit themes, and unique style and tone. Early life Radiguet was born in Saint-Maur, Val-de-Marne, close to Paris, the son of a caricaturist. In 1917, he moved to the city. Soon he would drop out of the Lycée Charlemagne, where he studied, in order to pursue his interests in journalism and literature. Career In early 1923, Radiguet published his first and most famous novel, '' Le Diable au corps'' (''The Devil in the Flesh''). The story of a young married woman who has an affair with a 16-year-old boy while her husband is away fighting at the front provoked scandal in a country that had just been through World War I. Though Radiguet denied it, it was established later that the story was in large part autobiographical. His second novel, '' Le bal du Comte d'Orgel'' (''The Ball of Count Orgel''), also dealing with adultery, was only published posthumousl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Infernal Machine (play)
''The Infernal Machine'', or ''La Machine Infernale'' is a French play by the dramatist Jean Cocteau, based on the ancient Greek myth of Oedipus.David Bradby. "Cocteau, Jean" in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre,'' ed. Martin Banham, 1988. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 225 pp. . The play initially premiered on April 10, 1934 at the Theatre Louis Jouvet in Paris, France, under the direction of Louis Jouvet himself, with costumes and scene design by Christian Bérard. ''The Infernal Machine,'' as translated by Albert Bermel, was first played at the Phoenix Theatre, New York, on February 3, 1958, under the direction of Herbert Berghof, with scenery by Ming Cho Lee, costumes by Alvin Colt, and lighting by Tharon Musser. Plot summary Prologue The Voice presents a brief prologue and information about events that have occurred before the action of the play takes place. The Voice recounts that a baby is abandoned on a mountainside. The baby, Oedipus, is adopted by the King of Cori ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
