''The Bellman'' (French: ''Sortilèges'') is a 1945 French

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit physical or psychological fear in its viewers. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with Transgressive art, transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements of the genre include Mo ...

directed by

Christian-Jaque Christian-Jaque (byname of Christian Maudet; 4 September 1904 – 8 July 1994) was a French filmmaker. From 1954 to 1959, he was married to actress Martine Carol, who starred in several of his films, including ''Lucrèce Borgia'' (1953), ''M ...

and starring

Fernand Ledoux Fernand Ledoux (born Jacques Joseph Félix Fernand Ledoux, 24 January 1897, Tirlemont – 21 September 1993, Villerville) was a French film and theatre actor of Belgian origin. He studied with Raphaël Duflos at the CNSAD, and began hi ...

Renée Faure Renée Faure (born Reneé Paule Nanine Faure; November 4, 1918 – May 2, 2005) was a French stage and film actress. Early life Renée Faure was born Reneé Paule Nanine Faure on November 4, 1918, in Paris, France. Her father was René Fau ...

and Madeleine Robinson. The film portrays a village haunted by superstition and fears. Although released after the

Liberation Liberation or liberate may refer to: Film and television * ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War * "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode * "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode Gaming * '' Liberati ...

, the film was shot during the

German Occupation German-occupied Europe, or Nazi-occupied Europe, refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly militarily occupied and civil-occupied, including puppet states, by the (armed forces) and the government of Nazi Germany at ...

. The film's sets were designed by the

art director Art director is a title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, live-action and animated film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supe ...

Robert Gys Robert Gys (1901–1977) was a French art director.O'Shaughnessy p.238 Selected filmography * '' Imperial Violets'' (1924) * '' The Phantom of the Moulin Rouge'' (1925) * ''Miss Europe'' (1930) * ''Dance Hall'' (1931) * '' The Dream'' (1931) * '' ...

. The film was popular and recorded admissions in France of 2,552,165.French box office results for 1945
at Box Office Story.

Cast

as Fabret, le 'lièvre' *

as Catherine Fabret * Madeleine Robinson as Marthe *

Roger Pigaut Roger Pigaut (birth name Roger Paul Louis Pigot) (8 April 1919 – 24 December 1989) was a French actor and film director. He appeared in 40 films between 1943 and 1980. Partial filmography * ''Retour de flamme'' (1943) − Maurice * ''Lo ...

as Pierre *Georges Tourreil as Le brigadier *

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) * '' Rouletabille the Aviator'' ( ...

as Le cordonnier *

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 villageois * Jacques Butin *

Léon Larive Léon François Larive (28 June 1886 – 20 July 1961) was a French film actor. He appeared in more than 90 films between 1923 and 1961. Selected filmography * '' Two Timid Souls'' (1928) * '' The Great Passion'' (1928) * '' La Passion de ...

Pierre Labry Pierre Labry (1885–1948) was a French stage actor, stage and film actor.Capua p.122 He was active in the French film industry between 1920 and 1948, appearing in more than a hundred films. Selected filmography * ''La croisade'' (1920) * ''Gigo ...

as L'idiot du village * Sinoël as La grand-mère * Lucien Coëdel as Jean-Baptiste, le campanier *

Michel Piccoli Jacques Daniel Michel Piccoli (27 December 1925 – 12 May 2020) was a French actor, producer and film director with a career spanning 70 years. He was lauded as one of the greatest French character actors of his generation who played a wide vari ...

as Un villageois

References

External links

* 1945 films Films directed by Christian-Jaque French drama films French horror films 1945 drama films 1945 horror films French black-and-white films 1940s French-language films 1940s French films Films scored by Henri Verdun Films with screenplays by Jacques Prévert {{1940s-France-film-stub