''Night Express'' (French: ''Rapide de nuit'') is a 1948 French

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

Marcel Blistène Marcel Blistène, born Marcel Blitstein (3 June 1911 in Paris – 2 August 1991), was a French film director. Marcel Blistène joined Paramount Pictures, Paramount in 1930 as an assistant, after studying literature. He then began a career as ...

and starring

Roger Pigaut Roger Pigaut (birth name Roger Paul Louis Pigot) (8 April 1919 – 24 December 1989) was a French actor and film director. He appeared in 40 films between 1943 and 1980. Partial filmography * ''Retour de flamme'' (1943) - Maurice * '' Lov ...

Sophie Desmarets Sophie Desmarets (1922–2012) was a French film actress.Davis p.145 Selected filmography * ''Battement de coeur'' (1940) - (uncredited) * ''Premier rendez-vous'' (1941) - Henriette Lefranc * ''L'homme qui joue avec le feu'' (1942) - Gabrielle * ...

and Paul Demange.Bessy & Chirat p.463 The film's sets were designed by the

art director Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film industry, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and ...

Jacques Colombier Jacques Colombier is a French politician and a member of National Front (France), National Front. As the FN's top candidate in Aquitaine in the 2004 French regional elections, 2004 regional elections he won 11.45% of the votes in the first round ...

Synopsis

A woman tricks an apparently naïve young man into carrying a

suitcase A suitcase is a form of luggage. It is a rectangular container with a handle typically used to carry one's clothes and other belongings while traveling. The first suitcases appeared in the late 19th century due to the increased popularity of ma ...

full of

stolen goods Possession of stolen goods is a crime in which an individual has bought, been given, or acquired stolen goods. In many jurisdictions, if an individual has accepted possession of goods (or property) and knew they were stolen, then the individua ...

into a

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

. The young man substitutes the case for another, however, to avoid being an

accomplice Under the English common law, an accomplice is a person who actively participates in the commission of a crime, even if they take no part in the actual criminal offense. For example, in a bank robbery, the person who points the gun at the teller ...

Cast

as Robert *

as Simone * Paul Demange as M. Grand *

Jean Brochard Jean Brochard (12 March 1893 – 17 June 1972) was a French film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1933 and 1966. Selected filmography * '' A Man's Neck'' (1933) - Petit rôle (uncredited) * ''Boubouroche'' (1933) * ''La ...

as L'inspecteur Verdier *

Jane Marken Jane Marken (born Jeanne Berthe Adolphine Crabbe, sometimes credited as Jeanne Marken, 13 January 1895 in Paris 10th arrondissement – 1 December 1976 in Paris 4th arrondissement) was a French actress. She was the first wife of the actor Ju ...

as Mme Louis *

Maurice Teynac Maurice Teynac (1915–1992) was a French actor. In 1948 he starred in the film '' The Lame Devil'' under Sacha Guitry. In 1954 he appeared in London's West End in J.B. Priestley's poorly reviewed play ''The White Countess''. Selected filmogr ...

as Georges Sommer *

Michel Ardan ''From the Earth to the Moon: A Direct Route in 97 Hours, 20 Minutes'' (french: De la Terre à la Lune, trajet direct en 97 heures 20 minutes) is an 1865 novel by Jules Verne. It tells the story of the Baltimore Gun Club, a post-American Civil ...

as Un des deux complices *

Paul Azaïs Paul François Robert Azaïs (6 May 1902 – 17 November 1974) was a French film actor. He appeared in more than 110 films between 1929 and 1966. Selected filmography * ''The Three Masks'' (1929) - Le fils Vescotelli * ''Le défenseur'' (1 ...

as Un inspecteur *

Hélène Dassonville Helene or Hélène may refer to: People *Helene (given name), a Greek feminine given name *Helen of Troy, the daughter of Zeus and Leda *Helene, a figure in Greek mythology who was a friend of Aphrodite and helped her seduce Adonis *Helene (Ama ...

as La caissière *

Louis Florencie Louis Florencie (4 December 1896 – 4 December 1951) was a French film actor. He appeared in more than 80 films between 1927 and 1951. Selected filmography * ''Companion Wanted'' (1932) * ''Beauty Spot (film), Beauty Spot'' (1932) * ''Suza ...

as Le garçon *

Gabrielle Fontan Gabrielle Fontan (16 April 1873 – 8 September 1959) was a French film actress. She appeared in more than 120 films between 1927 and 1959. Selected filmography * '' Misdeal'' (1928) * '' The Crime of Sylvestre Bonnard'' (1929) * '' The La ...

as La mère aux chats *

Jean Gaven Jean Gaven (16 January 1918 – 5 May 2014) was a French actor. He appeared in more than sixty films between 1945 and 1996. Life and career Born in Saint-Rome-de-Cernon, France on January 16, 1922, Gaven began acting sometime after the end of W ...

as Un des deux complices *

Henry Murray Henry Alexander Murray (May 13, 1893 – June 23, 1988) was an American psychologist at Harvard University, where from 1959 to 1962 he conducted a series of psychologically damaging and purposefully abusive experiments on minors and underg ...

as Le directeur

References

Bibliography

* Bessy, Maurice & Chirat, Raymond. ''Histoire du cinéma français: encyclopédie des films, 1940–1950. Pygmalion, 1986

External links

* 1948 films 1948 drama films French drama films 1940s French-language films French black-and-white films Films directed by Marcel Blistène 1940s French films {{1940s-France-film-stub fr:Rapide de nuit