''Wicked City'' (French: ''Hans le marin''; alternate title: ''The Last Port'') is a 1949 French-American
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 ...
directed by
François Villiers
François Villiers (2 March 1920 – 29 January 2009) Chevalier of the Legion of Honor was a French film director. He was responsible for several films, from '' Hans le marin'' in 1949, to '' Manika, une vie plus tard'', in 1989, which won th ...
and starring the husband-and-wife team of
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 for his World War II military service.
Early life
Aumont was born Jea ...
and
Maria Montez
María África Gracia Vidal (6 June 1912 – 7 September 1951), known professionally as Maria Montez, was a Dominican motion picture actress who gained fame and popularity in the 1940s starring in a series of filmed-in-Technicolor costume ...
. It was Montez's first film in Europe.
Film information at Mariamontez.org
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''Wicked City'' and '' The Man on the Eiffel Tower'' were the first French-American film co-productions following World War II.
Plot
Hans is a Canadian sailor docked in Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
s who is having an affair with cabaret owner Dolores. When he is robbed and left for dead, he awakens to discover that Dolores has disappeared. He takes on a job as a nightclub bouncer
A bouncer (also known as a doorman or door supervisor) is a type of security guard, employed at venues such as bars, nightclubs, cabaret clubs, stripclubs, casinos, hotels, billiard halls, restaurants, sporting events, schools, concerts, or ...
and has a fling with gypsy girl Tania.
Cast
*Jean-Pierre Aumont
*Maria Montez
*Lilli Palmer
Production
Aumont served with the Free French
Free France (french: France Libre) was a political entity that claimed to be the legitimate government of France following the dissolution of the Third Republic. Led by French general , Free France was established as a government-in-exile ...
army during World War II and was wounded by shrapnel near Marseilles in 1944. While recuperating, he read the novel ''Hans le marin'' by Edouard Peisson, and in 1946 he, his wife and his brother François Villiers visited Peisson to negotiate to purchase the film rights. Aumont was to write the script, Villiers was to direct and Montez and Aumont would star. The goal was to show Montez "is an actress as well as a manikin."
Andre Sarrut of Safia Productions agreed to pay the production costs of the film, up to 80,000 francs (then US$250,000). Aumont was to produce through his company with Montez, Christina Productions. Christina provided the services of Aumont, Montez and Lilli Palmer
Lilli Palmer (; born Lilli Marie Peiser; 24 May 1914 – 27 January 1986) was a German actress and writer. After beginning her career in British films in the 1930s, she would later transition to major Hollywood productions, earning a Golden Glob ...
; in exchange, Christina's share would be paid off first out of American box-office receipts.
Filming began in Marseilles in July 1948. Approximately 60% of the film was shot on location, with the remainder filmed 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 ...
in Paris.
References
External links
*
Films set in Marseille
1949 films
French drama films
1949 drama films
1940s French-language films
Films shot at Joinville Studios
Films directed by François Villiers
French black-and-white films
English-language French films
1940s French films
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