''Topaze'' is a 1933 French

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

Louis J. Gasnier Louis Joseph Gasnier (September 15, 1875 – February 15, 1963) was a French-American film director, producer, screenwriter and stage actor. A cinema pioneer, Gasnier shepherded the early career of comedian Max Linder, co-directed the enormously ...

and starring Louis Jouvet,

Simone Héliard Simone Héliard was a French stage and film actress.White p.366 Selected filmography * '' Mistigri'' (1931) * '' Topaze'' (1933) * ''Côte d'Azur'' (1932) * ''The Champion Cook'' (1932) * '' A Love Story'' (1933) * ''Bach the Millionaire ''B ...

and

Marcel Vallée Marcel Vallée (15 January 1880, in Paris – 31 October 1957, in Fontaine-le-Port) was a French actor, primarily of the theater. He began working in films with Max Linder in 1906. He appeared in some American films. Selected filmography * '' ...

.Goble p.987 It is based on the 1928 play '' Topaze'' by

Marcel Pagnol Marcel Paul Pagnol (; 28 February 1895 – 18 April 1974) was a French novelist, playwright, and filmmaker. Regarded as an auteur, in 1946, he became the first filmmaker elected to the Académie française. Although his work is less fashionabl ...

. The same year, an American version of the play '' Topaze'' was released, starring

John Barrymore John Barrymore (born John Sidney Blyth; February 14 or 15, 1882 – May 29, 1942) was an American actor on stage, screen and radio. A member of the Drew and Barrymore theatrical families, he initially tried to avoid the stage, and briefly att ...

. In 1936, Pagnol himself remade the film in France. It was made 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 city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 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), ma ...

by the French subsidiary of Paramount Pictures. The film's sets were designed by the art director

René Renoux René Renoux (1904–2000) was a French art director.Buache p.162 Selected filmography * ''The Pure Truth'' (1931) * '' Topaze'' (1933) * '' Prince Jean'' (1934) * '' Speak to Me of Love'' (1935) * '' You Can't Fool Antoinette'' (1936) * '' The ...

Synopsis

An earnest

schoolteacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

who teaches his pupils that honesty is the best policy eventually changes his mind when confronted with the corruption of the business world.

Cast

* Louis Jouvet as Albert Topaze *

as Ernestine *

as Muche *

Jane Loury Jeanne Loury or Jane Loury (1876–1951) was a French stage and film actress.Goble p.199 Selected filmography * '' My Aunt from Honfleur'' (1923) * '' House in the Sun'' (1929) * ''All That's Not Worth Love'' (1931) * '' A Son from America'' (1 ...

as Baronne Pitart Vergolles * Maurice Rémy as Roger de Tréville *

Pierre Larquey Pierre Larquey (10 July 1884 – 17 April 1962) was a French film actor. He appeared in more than 200 films between 1913 and 1962. Born in Cénac, Gironde, France, he died in Maisons-Laffitte at the age of 77. Selected filmography * ''Patr ...

as Tamise *

Edwige Feuillère Edwige Feuillère (born Edwige Louise Caroline Cunatti; October 29, 1907 – November 13, 1998) was a French stage and film actress. Biography She was born Edwige Louise Caroline Cunatti to an Italian architect father and an Alsace-born mo ...

as Suzy Courtois * Camille Beuve as Le mâitre-chanteur *

Henri Vilbert Henri Vilbert (6 April 1904 – 20 April 1997) was a French actor. He appeared in more than a hundred films from 1921 to 1982. Filmography References External links * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vilbert, Henri 1904 births 1997 deaths 20th- ...

as Un agent de police * Micheline Bernard *

Jacqueline Delubac Jacqueline Delubac (1907–1997) was a French stage and film actress.Williams p.158 She was married to Sacha Guitry and appeared in a number of his productions on both stage and screen. Selected filmography * '' Let's Get Married'' (1931) * '' T ...

* Raymonde Debrennes

References

Bibliography

* Goble, Alan. ''The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film''. Walter de Gruyter, 1999.

External links

* 1933 films French comedy films 1930s French-language films 1933 comedy films Films directed by Louis J. Gasnier Films set in Paris French films based on plays Films based on works by Marcel Pagnol Films shot at Joinville Studios Paramount Pictures films French black-and-white films 1930s French films {{1930s-France-film-stub