''Two Pennies Worth of Violets'' (French: ''Deux sous de violettes'') is a 1951 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

Jean Anouilh Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh (; 23 June 1910 – 3 October 1987) was a French dramatist whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1944 play ''Antigone'', an ad ...

and starring

Dany Robin Dany Robin (; 14 April, 1927 – 25 May, 1995) was a French actress of the 1950s and the 1960s. Career Robin was born Danielle Robin in Clamart. She performed with Peter Sellers in ''The Waltz of the Toreadors'', and co-starred opposite Kirk D ...

Georges Baconnet Georges Baconnet (1892–1961) was a French stage and film actor.Gabanelli & Mattirolo p.47 He was a member of the Comédie-Française from 1946 to his death. Selected filmography * '' The Last Judgment'' (1945) * '' La carcasse et le tord-cou'' ...

and

Madeleine Barbulée Madeleine Barbulée (2 September 1910 – 1 January 2001) was a French film, stage and television actress.''French Cinema in the 1970s: The Echoes of May'' p.265 Selected filmography * ''Métier de fous'' (1948) * '' Les Casse Pieds'' (1948) - ...

.Oscherwitz & Higgins p.376 It was one of two films directed by the dramatist Anouilh along with '' Traveling Light'' (1944). It was shot at the

Billancourt Studios Billancourt Studios was a film studio in Paris which operated between 1922 and 1992. Located in Boulogne-Billancourt, it was one of the leading French studios. It was founded in the silent era by Henri Diamant-Berger. During the Second World War ...

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 ...

. 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 ...

Léon Barsacq Léon Barsacq (18 October 1906 – 23 December 1969) was a Russian-born and naturalized French production designer, art director and set decorator. He was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Art Direction for the film '' Th ...

Synopsis

Thérèse is a young

flower seller A flower seller, normally a woman, traditionally sells flowers on the street. Often the flowers are carried in a basket, for example. The subject matter has been a favorite of artists.Diego RiveraThe Flower Seller, 1942. The profession has mostly d ...

who has had a hard life with an unsympathetic family. Her encounters with men are also tragic as they prove to be either predatory or abandon her when she needs them most.

Cast

as Thérèse Desforges *

as Pignot - le fleuriste *

as La chanteuse des rues *

Michel Bouquet Michel Bouquet (6 November 1925 – 13 April 2022) was a French stage and film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films from 1947 to 2020. He won the Best Actor European Film Award for '' Toto the Hero'' in 1991 and two Best Actor Césars fo ...

as Maurice Desforges *

Georges Chamarat Georges Chamarat (30 March 1901 – 21 November 1982) was a French actor. He appeared in more than 100 films and television shows between 1929 and 1981. He starred in the film '' The Adventures of Arsène Lupin'', which was entered into the ...

as Monsieur Dubreck *

Jacques Clancy Jacques Clancy (17 May 1920 - 19 May 2012) was a French actor, sociétaire of the Comédie-Française. Filmography * 1938 : ''Carrefour'' by Kurt Bernhardt * 1945 : '' A Friend Will Come Tonight'' by Raymond Bernard - ''Jacques Leroy'' * ...

as André Delgrange *

Léonce Corne Léonce Charles Corne (18 March 1894 – 31 December 1977) was a French film actor. He appeared in 120 films between 1931 and 1974. Selected filmography * ''The Girl and the Boy'' (1931) * ''Luck'' (1931) * ''The Premature Father'' (1933) ...

as Le médecin *

Henri Crémieux Henri Crémieux (19 July 1896 – 10 May 1980) was a French actor. He appeared in more than a hundred films between 1930 and 1980. Selected filmography External links * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cremieux, Henri 1896 births 1980 deaths Male ac ...

as Bousquet *

Max Dalban Max Dalban (27 May 1908 – 9 February 1958) was a French film actor.Macdonald p.244 Selected filmography * ''Boudu Saved from Drowning'' (1932) * '' Chotard and Company'' (1933) * ''Street Without a Name'' (1934) * ''Toni'' (1935) * ''The Alib ...

as Le cafetier *

Mona Dol Mona Dol (28 May 1901 – 29 December 1990) was a French actress. Born Amélie Alice Gabrielle Delbart in Lille, she died in Paris in 1990. Selected filmography * ''Lucrezia Borgia'' (1935) * '' The Gardens of Murcia'' (1936) * '' Madame San ...

as Madame Lambert *

Yvette Etiévant Yvette Etiévant (1922–2003) was a French actress. She starred in Yves Robert's '' War of the Buttons'' (''La Guerre des boutons'') in 1962. Filmography *1945: '' Les Dames du bois de Boulogne'' (directed by Robert Bresson) - La bonne *19 ...

as Lucienne Desforge *

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 concierge *

Madeleine Geoffroy Madeleine may refer to: Common meanings *Madeleine (name), also Madeline, a feminine given name *Madeleine (cake), a traditional sweet cake from France *Mary Magdalene, also called the Madeleine Arts and entertainment * ''Madelein'' (1919 fi ...

as Madame Pignot *

Yolande Laffon Yolande Laffon (1895–1992) was a French stage and film actress.Goble p.38 Selected filmography * ''Love Songs'' (1930) * '' Suzanne'' (1932) * ''Mayerling'' (1936) * '' Beethoven's Great Love'' (1937) * '' The Mysteries of Paris'' (1943) * ''Th ...

as Madame Delgrange * Madeleine Lambert as Une amie *

Héléna Manson Elena Eugenia Manson (18 August 1898 – 15 September 1994) was a French film actress. She appeared in more than 100 films between 1925 and 1989. Selected filmography * ''La vocation d'André Carel'' (1925) – L'amoureuse de Cardan * ''Th ...

as Jeanne Desforges *

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 Madame Dubreck *

Geneviève Morel Geneviève Morel (1916–1989) was a French stage and film actress.Bessy & Chirat p.233 Selected filmography * '' Beating Heart'' (1940) * ''Mademoiselle Swing'' (1942) * ''Goodbye Leonard'' (1943) * '' Secrets of a Ballerina'' (1943) * '' Cecil ...

as Germaine *

Marcel Pérès Marcel Pérès (born 15 July 1956, Oran, Algeria) is a French musicologist, composer, choral director and singer, and the founder of the early music group Ensemble Organum. He is an authority on Gregorian and pre-Gregorian chant. Pérès was ...

as Le contremaître * Jean Pommier as Yvon * Marcelle Praince as Une vieille dame *

Yves Robert Yves Robert (19 June 1920 – 10 May 2002) was a French actor, screenwriter, director, and producer. Life and career Robert was born in Saumur, Maine-et-Loire, France. In his teens, he went to Paris to pursue a career in acting, starting with ...

as Charlot * Etienne Yvernès as Le garçon *

Monique Watteau Alika Lindbergh (born Monique Dubois, 23 December 1929), commonly known by her former name Monique Watteau, is a Belgian fantasy fiction writer and artist. Early life Watteau was born Monique Dubois in Liège on 23 December 1929. Her father was H ...

as Simone

References

Bibliography

*Oscherwitz, Dayna & Higgins, Maryellen. ''The A to Z of French Cinema''. Scarecrow Press, 2009.

External links

* 1951 films 1951 drama films French drama films 1950s French-language films Gaumont Film Company films Films set in Paris Films shot at Billancourt Studios 1950s French films {{1950s-France-film-stub