Crime et châtiment (1935/I)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Pierre Chenal

Writers:

Marcel Aymé (writer)
Pierre Chenal (writer)

Release Date:

17 May 1935 (France)

Genre:

Drama

Plot Keywords:

Based On Novel

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Harry Baur	...	Porphyre
Pierre Blanchar	...	Raskolnikov
Madeleine Ozeray	...	Sonia
Lucienne Le Marchand	...	Dounia (as Lucienne Lemarchand)
Marcelle Géniat	...	Mme Raskolnikov
Alexandre Rignault	...	Razoumikhine
Sylvie	...	Catherine Ivanova
Aimé Clariond	...	Loujine
Magdeleine Bérubet	...	Aliona (as Magdelaine Bérubet)
Georges Douking	...	Nicolas (as Douking)
Marcel Delaître	...	Marmeladov (as Marcel Delaitre)
Catherine Hessling	...	Elisabeth
Daniel Gilbert	...	Zamiatov
Paulette Élambert	...	Polia
Paul Asselin	...	Le lieutenant Poudre

Also Known As:

Crime and Punishment (USA)

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

France:-16

Company:

Général Productions

Movie Connections:

Version of Rikos ja rangaistus (1983)

Cat and mouse in a chocolate box Russia.

There was a lot of FRench movies in the thirties which would take place in Russia ("les Nuits Moscovites" ,"les Nuits de Saint-Petersburg" and even Renoir's "les Bas-Fonds" and Lherbier 's "la Tragédie Impériale ").All these works have in common the inability to create a Russian atmosphere .Paying in roubles and kopecks is not enough to make us believe we are in Russia.

What am I driving at? Well,it is simple: if the direction and the actors are worthwhile ,then the movie can be rewarding.Such is the case of the famous Russian novel adaptation by Pierre Chenal.The scene of the double crime is particularly gripping ,using to enhance the tragedy Honegger's haunting music.

Pierre Blanchard ,sometimes a bland actor, gave in "Crime et Chatiment" his best performance ever.His haunted eyes,his feverish look and his extreme nervousness are really impressive and his portrayal shows every nuance of his fragility and of his despair.Matching him all the way is Harry Baur's mischievous smooth-tongued portrayal of Judge Porphyre:he seems to play cat and mouse with his suspect....and some viewers would go as far as saying he 's a bit Colomboesque.On the other hand,Sonia's part is underwritten and her will to follow the convict is not really convincing.That's the main problem with the movie:the secondary are characters are not well treated .But the duel Blanchard/Baur makes it all worthwhile.