''House on the Waterfront'' (French: ''Port du désir'') is a 1955 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. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Edmond T. Gréville Edmond T. Gréville (born Edmond Gréville Thonger; 20 June 1906 – 26 May 1966) was a French film director and screenwriter. He was married to the actress Vanda Gréville. Career Gréville began his career as a film journalist and critic. ...

and starring

Jean Gabin Jean Gabin Alexis Moncorgé (born Jean-Alexis Moncorgé), known as 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 ...

Andrée Debar Andrée Debar (5 May 1920 – 24 January 1999) was a French actress and Film producer, producer of stage and screen.Hayward p.464 She was married to the right-wing French politician and film producer Roger Duchet. Selected filmography * ''Jud ...

and

Henri Vidal Henri Vidal (26 November 1919 – 10 December 1959) was a French film actor. Film career Henri Lucien Raymond VidalSource Les Gens du cinéma/ref> was first noticed after he won the "Apollo of 1939" contest in Paris. He was spotted by Édith ...

.Block p.49 It was made 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.Szczepanik & Vonderau p.141 It was founded in the silent era by Henri Diamant-Berger. Dur ...

with some

location filming Location shooting is the shooting of a film or television production in a real-world setting rather than a sound stage or backlot. The location may be interior or exterior. When filmmaking professionals refer to shooting "on location", they are ...

Marseilles Marseille (; ; see below) is a city in southern France, the prefecture of the department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the Provence region, it is located on the coast of the Mediterranean S ...

. The film's sets were designed by

Lucien Aguettand Lucien Aguettand (19 January 1901 – 14 December 1989) was a French art directorHayward p.205 who designed the sets for over eighty films during his career. Selected filmography * '' Little Devil May Care'' (1928) * ''Checkmate'' (1931) * ...

. Although completed in 1954, it wasn't released until the following year.

Synopsis

Captain Lequévic is ordered to refloat a ship that has sunk in the entrance to the harbor. However its owner, a man mixed up in

smuggling Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. More broadly, soc ...

and other illegal activities, is desperate to prevent him from doing so.

Partial cast

as Le commandant Lequévic *

as Martine *

as Michel * Edith Georges as Lola *

Leopoldo Francés Leopoldo is a given name, the Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese form of the English, German, Dutch, Polish, and Slovene name, Leopold. Notable people with the name include: *Leopoldo de' Medici (1617–1675), Italian cardinal and Governor of S ...

as Baba * René Sarvil as L'aveugle *

Gaby Basset Gaby Basset (29 March 1902 – 7 October 2001) was a French film actress.Goble p.37 Selected filmography * '' Everybody Wins'' (1930) – Simone * ''The Malay Dagger'' (1931) – Maggy * '' Departure'' (1931) – Carmen * ''Par habitude'' (1932 ...

as Madame Aimée *

Jacques Dynam Jacques Dynam (30 December 1923 – 11 November 2004) was a French film actor. He appeared in more than 150 films between 1942 and 2004, among which the ''Fantomas'' saga. Selected filmography * ''La symphonie fantastique'' (1942) - (uncre ...

as Le Meur *

Gaston Orbal Gaston Orbal (1898–1983) was a French stage and film actor.Lorcey p.244 Selected filmography * '' Dédé'' (1935) * ''Tricoche and Cacolet'' (1938) * '' My Aunt the Dictator'' (1939) * '' Tobias Is an Angel'' (1940) * '' The Suitors Club'' (194 ...

as Rossignol *

Edmond Ardisson Edmond Ardisson (23 October 1904, in Marseille – 30 November 1983, in Jouarre) was a French people, French actor. He appeared in more than ninety films between 1938 and 1983. Filmography External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ardisson, Edmond ...

as Le patron de la boîte * Mireille Ozy as Gaby * Annette Maistre as Une entraîneuse *

Yôko Tani was a Japanese-French actress and vedette, who had a career in both Japanese and European cinema during the 1950s and '60s. Early life Tani was born Yōko Itani (猪谷洋子) in Paris in 1928, to Japanese parents Zenichi Itani and Taeko Egi. H ...

as Une entraîneuse *

Raymond Blot Raymond is a male given name of Germanic origin. It was borrowed into English from French (older French spellings were Reimund and Raimund, whereas the modern English and French spellings are identical). It originated as the Germanic ᚱᚨᚷ� ...

Robert Berri Robert Berri (16 December 1912 – 22 November 1989) was a French film actor. He appeared in 100 films between 1937 and 1979. Selected filmography References External links * 1912 births 1989 deaths French male film actors Male ...

as Frédo, le malfrat *

Antonin Berval Antonin Berval (1891–1966) was a French film actor.Goble p.4 He is sometimes credited simply as Berval. Selected filmography * ''Notre Dame d'amour'' (1923) * ''Arthur'' (1931) - Hubert de Fondragon * ''Le costaud des PTT'' (1931) * '' To the ...

as Léon *

Jean-Roger Caussimon Jean-Roger Caussimon (24 July 1918 – 19 October 1985) was a "provocative, anarchising" French singer-songwriter and film actor. He appeared in 90 films between 1945 and 1985 but is better known for having worked with poet-singer Léo Ferr ...

as Monsieur Black

References

Bibliography

* Marcelline Block. ''World Film Locations: Marseilles''. Intellect Books, 2013.

External links

* 1955 films French drama films 1955 drama films 1950s French-language films Films directed by Edmond T. Gréville Films set in Marseille Films shot at Billancourt Studios Seafaring films Films scored by Joseph Kosma French black-and-white films 1950s French films {{1950s-France-film-stub