''The Messenger'' (French: ''Le messager'', or also known as ''Messenger Boy'') is a 1937 French

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

Raymond Rouleau Raymond Rouleau (4 June 1904 – 11 December 1981) was a Belgian actor and film director. He appeared in more than 40 films between 1928 and 1979. He also directed 22 films between 1932 and 1981. Rouleau studied at the Royal Conservatory of B ...

and starring

Gaby Morlay Gaby Morlay (born Blanche Pauline Fumoleau; 8 June 1893 – 4 July 1964) was a film actress from France.

Jean Gabin Jean Gabin (; 17 May 190415 November 1976) was a French actor and singer. Considered a key figure in French cinema, he starred in several classic films including ''Pépé le Moko'' (1937), ''La grande illusion'' (1937), ''Le Quai des brumes'' ( ...

and

Mona Goya Mona Goya (25 November 1909 – 8 October 1961) was a Mexican-born French film actress who rose to fame in the 1930s. Selected filmography * ''Madame Récamier'' (1928) * ''Princesse Mandane'' (1928) - Simoun * ''L'Argent'' (1928) * ''Jim Hack ...

.Kennedy-Karpat p.32 It was based on a play by

Henri Bernstein Henri-Léon-Gustave-Charles Bernstein (20 June 1876 – 27 November 1953) was a French playwright associated with Boulevard theatre. Biography Bernstein was born in Paris. His earliest plays, including ''La Rafale'' (1905), ''Le Voleur'' (1907), ...

. Morlay reprised her role while

Victor Francen Victor Francen (born Victor Franssens, 5 August 1888 – 18 November 1977) was a Belgian-born actor with a long career in French cinema and in Hollywood. Biography Francen was born in 1888 in Tienen, the son of a chief of police. According ...

, who had played the male lead on stage, was replaced by Gabin. It was shot at the

Joinville Studios The Joinville Studios were a film studio in Paris which operated between 1910 and 1987. They were one of the leading French studios, with major companies such as Pathé and Gaumont making films there. A second studio was added to the original ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

and the

Victorine Studios Victorine Studios (French: Studios de la Victorine) are a film studio in the French city of Nice. They are also known as the Nice Studios. Several small studios have also existed in the city. Originally built in 1921 in an attempt to create a H ...

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...

. The film's

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

was by

Eugène Lourié Eugène Lourié (russian: Евгений Лурье; 8 April 1903 – 26 May 1991) was a French film director, art director, production designer, set designer and screenwriter who was known for his collaborations with Jean Renoir and for ...

Synopsis

After leaving his

socialite A socialite is a person from a wealthy and (possibly) aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having traditio ...

wife to marry her secretary, Nick Dange finds his well-connected wife has arranged for him to be made unemployable in

. The only work that he is able to get is to manage a

mine Mine, mines, miners or mining may refer to: Extraction or digging * Miner, a person engaged in mining or digging *Mining, extraction of mineral resources from the ground through a mine Grammar *Mine, a first-person English possessive pronoun ...

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...

. He feels lonely and isolated, thousands of miles from his wife. His only companion is a fellow worker named Jack. When Jack returns to Paris after being injured, Nick asks him to take a message to his wife. Yet she is also lonely and begins an affair with Jack, who has already come to idolize her from the descriptions that Nick had made back in Africa. Yet when Nick returns to Paris and discovers the illicit relationship, Jack commits

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...

Cast

Gaby Morlay Gaby Morlay (born Blanche Pauline Fumoleau; 8 June 1893 – 4 July 1964) was a film actress from France.

as Marie *

as Nick Dange *

as Pierrette *

Maurice Escande Maurice Escande (14 November 1892 – 10 February 1973) was a French stage and film actor. In 1948 he starred in the film '' The Lame Devil'' under Sacha Guitry. Selected filmography *1917: ''Un vol étrange'' (Short) *1918: ''Simone'' - Mich ...

as Géo *

Henri Guisol Henri Guisol (12 October 1904 – 11 May 1994) was a French film actor. He appeared in more than seventy films from 1931 to 1980. He enjoyed a career in French '' who done its'' and film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily t ...

as Jack *

Pierre Alcover Pierre Alcover (14 March 1893 – 14 November 1957) was a French stage and film actor. He starred in 40 films between 1918 and 1943. In 1920 he starred in the film ''Champi-Tortu''. One of his most notable performances was in Marcel L'Herbier' ...

as Morel *

Ernest Ferny Ernest Ferny (1886–1939) was a Swiss film actor.Goble p.411 Selected filmography * '' Tarakanova'' (1930) * ''Moscow Nights'' (1934) * '' The Lady of Lebanon'' (1934) * ''Light Cavalry'' (1935) * ''Taras Bulba'' (1936) * ''The Red Dancer'' (1937 ...

as L'industriel * Betty Rowe as Florence * as Dolly *

Jean-Pierre Aumont Jean-Pierre Aumont (born Jean-Pierre Philippe Salomons; 5 January 1911 – 30 January 2001) was a French actor, and holder of the Légion d'Honneur and the Croix de guerre 1939–1945, Croix de Guerre for his World War II military service. Ea ...

as Gilbert Rollin *

Bernard Blier Bernard Blier (11 January 1916 – 29 March 1989) was a French character actor. He was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where his father, a researcher at the Pasteur Institute, was posted at the time. Life and career His rotund features an ...

as Le chauffeur de Nick *

Lucien Coëdel Lucien Coëdel (1899–1947) was a French film actor. He appeared in the title role in the historical film '' Roger la Honte'' and its sequel ''The Revenge of Roger ''The Revenge of Roger'' (French: ''La revanche de Roger la Honte'') is a 1946 F ...

as L'agent * as Le notaire *

Jean Témerson Jean Témerson (1898–1956) was a French actor. Selected filmography * '' The Lover of Madame Vidal'' (1936) - Guillaume - le domestique * '' With a Smile'' (1936) - Cam (uncredited) * '' Pépé le Moko'' (1937) - Gravère * ''Blanchette'' (1 ...

as Le maître d'hôtel *

Robert Vattier Robert Vattier (2 October 1906 – 9 December 1982) was a French actor. He was the father of the comedic actress Bérangère Vattier. Selected filmography * '' Marius'' (1931) - Albert Brun * '' Fanny'' (1932) - Albert Brun * ''Vers l'abîme ...

as Le représentant

References

Bibliography

* Kennedy-Karpat, Colleen. ''Rogues, Romance, and Exoticism in French Cinema of the 1930s''. Fairleigh Dickinson, 2013.

External links

* 1937 films 1930s French-language films Films directed by Raymond Rouleau Films set in Paris Films set in Uganda French films based on plays French action drama films 1930s action drama films 1937 drama films Films shot at Joinville Studios Films shot at Victorine Studios Pathé films 1930s French films {{1930s-France-film-stub