2) I must disagree with the other reviewer; this film is, byfar,the funniest film that Lucille Ball EVER MADE! There areGreatroutines: Ball in prison, trying to cook a meal, being amaid,etc. Each of these is Ball at her funniest! (If thisfilmwasn’t any good, why was a sequel — which was very UNfunny–made?). Ball, in contrast to the grating "dizzy dame" bitsheoverkilled on TV (didn’t her whining make you want to BELT her one?), hereshe is fresh and beautiful, and reminds me a lotof Alexis Smith. This comedy is a Must See for LucilleBallfans! Norm

3) It’s easy to see why one viewer would love this movie and anothercouldn’t stand it. I have had both reactions the two times I saw it.

Boy, I loved this the first time I viewed it and then was totally boredon the second viewing 10 years later, so it’s hard to evaluate. Sufficeto say it does have it’s share of laughs which isn’t surprising sinceLucille Ball and Jack Oakie star. However, the humor is so corny onemight see no humor in this – it all depends on what you like.

It WAS interesting to see a young (26 or 27-year-old) Ball, who wasvery attractive woman at that age. Oakie is okay because he looksfunny. He doesn’t even have to say anything to get a laugh, whichsometimes is better because he played a number of roles over the yearsin which he delivered a lot of stupid lines!

Like a lot of comedies, it’s very silly but the shortness of the film(68 minutes) helps in that regard, preventing it from becoming toosilly for too long. There were some funny supporting roles in here,too. Like me, you might really laugh at this or think it’s a waste oftime: hard to say.

4) Personally, I've always felt that the best comedies were the ones whereyou could actually believe in the situations–in other words, theevents are things that could have happened. THE AFFAIRS OF ANNABEL isfunny in spots, but hasn't got a single moment that is in touch withreality.

JACK OAKIE plays a scheming publicity man who dreams up the mostoutrageous ways of getting attention (newspaper headlines) for hisfading star LUCILLE BALL, her film career supposedly on the wane. Oneplan involves getting her to spend three days in prison (which turnsout to be 30 days) and to have the press on hand when she's released.The plan backfires, of course, and Lucy fires him.

She rehires him when he gets a little old lady (LEONA ROBERTS, Mrs.Meade from GWTW), to pretend to be his sick mother who needs money foran operation. Lucy relents and he comes up with another scheme–hernext film is called "The Maid and the Man" so he gets her work as amaid in a wacky household. It turns out the house has become the nestfor two infamous criminals and Lucy, of course, gets into the thick ofthings while Oakie tries to rescue her by hiring fake police officersto storm the house.

It had possibilities but emerges as a scatterbrained comedy without anyreal foothold on reality. THURSTON HALL is fun as a plate breakingscientist and RUTH DONNELLY has a few good one-liners as a studioreceptionist, but other than that the gags are pretty hard to swallowat times.

Best that can be said is that LUCILLE BALL shows skill at this sort ofcomedy and looks pert and pretty throughout. OAKIE overplays the pressagent with outlandish schemes but is fun to watch.

If you love Lucy, you'll find this acceptable fare but lacking in somany departments.

5) I must disagree with the other reviewer; this film is, byfar,the funniest film that Lucille Ball EVER MADE! There areGreatroutines: Ball in prison, trying to cook a meal, being amaid,etc. Each of these is Ball at her funniest! (If thisfilmwasn’t any good, why was a sequel — which was very UNfunny–made?). Ball, in contrast to the grating "dizzy dame" bitsheoverkilled on TV (didn’t her whining make you want to BELT her one?), hereshe is fresh and beautiful, and reminds me a lotof Alexis Smith. This comedy is a Must See for LucilleBallfans! Norm

6) A lackluster screenplay doesn’t help this comedy about a movie star, LucilleBall, whose publicity man, Jack Oakie, uses stupid schemes to get her namein the newspapers. Unfortunately, very little of the film is funny, but itwas nice to see a very young Lucille Ball, even in black and white. Ball,Oakie, Bradley Page and Ruth Donnelly reprised their roles in this secondand last film based on the characters created in the 1938 film "The Affairsof Annabel" by Charles Hoffman. There would have been more in the series,but Oakie wanted too large a fee for his services.

• Arthur Schnitzler’s original one-act play, “Anatol,” was written in 1893. Harley Granville-Barker’s English adaptation opened in New York City on 14 October 1912 with John Barrymore in the title role, and it lasted 72 performances.

• Crew or equipment visible: In the flashback sequence where Emilie is on a swing and two mirrors are set up to give repeated reflections of the action, the cameraman bending over his camera is visible a few times when the swing moves out of the way.

During the 1920’s, director Cecil B. DeMille became famousfortwo types of film – the lavish historical spectacle & theelaborate, somewhat salacious, social comedy. ANATOL isanexample of the latter. While its plot is insignificant(andfaintly ludicrous), it is still quite enjoyable to watch, andcanboast of fine performances & superior production values.

In the title role, Wallace Reid acquits himself very well asthehapless rich chump whose noble deeds always seem to backfire.Good-natured & affable, he is only too susceptible to damselsindistress. But even this worm can turn, and his violent scenes-laying waste the apartment of a mendacious maiden, crashinginto his wife’s locked boudoir – show the energy & passionofwhich this nearly forgotten star was capable.

Gloria Swanson, as Reid’s lively spouse; Wanda Hawley asamillionaire’s courtesan; Agnes Ayres as a duplicitous countrywife; and diabolic Bebe Daniels as the ultimate vamp, alladdgreatly to the enjoyment of the proceedings, slinking aboutinfashions (all except Miss Ayres) only crazy movie folk ofthe1920’s could ever truly get by with.

Movie mavens will have no trouble spotting the irrepressiblePolly Moran as a zany nightclub orchestra leader.

A Wallace Reid film is a rather rare & wonderful thing now,asmost of them seem to have vanished long ago. Reid, immenselypopular in his day, was the epitome of the American Hero.Tragically, his story became a living nightmare. Injuriesreceived while on location in Oregon in 1919 left him seeminglyunable to complete his role. The Paramount Studio doctorwasdispatched to plug him full of morphine and put him backinfront of the cameras. It worked, but already weakened byalcoholism, Reid now became a helpless morphine addict.Hisproblem was an open secret in Hollywood, but instead ofthereal help he desperately needed, he was given more of thedeadly drug. His box office returns were considered toovaluable, and the Studio pushed him through an insufferablenumber of films – 7 in 1921, 8 in 1922. After ANATOL, inwhichit was becoming obvious that his good looks were beginningtodecay, Reid made 11 more films in increasing agony. Hisdeathon January 18, 1923, was officially attributed to the influenzawhich finally overcame the body debilitated by alcohol &drugaddiction. Wallace Reid was only 31 years old.

2) Highly entertaining marital situation-morality play of the sort Cecil B.DeMille was so adroit during the silent period (He seemed to have lost histouch later on with similar bedroom farces/battle-of-the-sexes films in the1929 & 1930 "Dynamite" and "Madame Satan" and wisely stuck thereafter to hisother strong suits, adventures and Bibilical extravaganzas-morality tales). The title is a bit misleading in that the "affairs" are not affairs in theusual sense of the word. Wallace Reid stars in the title role as thehandsome, rich husband Anatol de Witt Spencer, a chivalrous, idealistic,romantically ‘inclined’ young man who is unable to pass up any opportunityto aid young and beautiful damsels-in-distress, much to the dismay andexasperation (not to mention jealousy) of his glamorous wife Vivian (GloriaSwanson) and at the expense of their marital harmony. The three "damsels"in the film drive home the expressions "you can’t tell a book by its cover"and "things are not what they may seem" and are covered in an effective"vignette" style fashion–Anatol’s former sweetheart Emilie Dixon (WandaHawley) is now a rich old man’s mistress, apparently sincere but in realitydeceptively repentant. The scene where Anatol realizes he’s been duped is awildly satisfying, frenetic, cathartic one as he figuratively and literally(and how!) lets Emilie’s sugar daddy "pick up the pieces!"

The 2nd damsel is a seemingly sweet and pure country girl (Agnes Ayres) whohas despondently thrown herself into a river to drown due to the irreparabletrouble she has caused in her marriage. She turns out to be rather schemingand seductive when Anatol yet again takes on the role of savior, as well asthat of dupe, albeit the latter role as unwittingly as before. The scenewhere Anatol and Vivian attempt to revive the apparently half-drowned,unmoving Ayres is quite amusing, it looks as if they’re performingcalisthenics upon a corpse!

These 2 deceptive "damsels" cause Anatol to lament about the lack of"loyalty and honesty," but as a wise character in the film informs him,"loyalty and honesty, like charity, begins at home," which at this point hasseriously deteriorated from neglect due to Anatol’s dogged,romantically-tinged samaritan pursuits, when he goes off yet again to theostensibly venal vixen Satan Synne (Bebe Daniels), an infamous stagestar-courtesan known as "the wickedest woman in New York," but this time hisintent is purely "romantic" rather than gallant. But his anticipatedrendezvous doesn’t unfold as expected when Satan, unlike the others, revealsherself to be genuinely "loyal and honest," deceptive, but in a good way. Unlike the other 2 segments, this one is not comical butpoignant.

Particular praise for Wallace Reid, who is exemplary as Anatol, more thancapably embodying his characters’ sense of chivalry, romance, sophisticationand "goodness," but also a man that is not above being human and fallingprey to feelings of fury, stubbornness, revenge, and, of course, a prettyface. It’s easy to see why he was a superstar in his day (unfortunatelycompletely forgotten now). He had it all–the virile boy-man good looks,the tall strapping build, talent, and, most of all, charisma and energy tospare. A pity he died under excruciating circumstances at the young age of32, it’s almost enough to take some enjoyment out of the film, but evenknowing he was in terrible pain and under the drugs that would help do himin when this film was made, he still manages to be so good (not to mentionhealthy-appearing) as to make any viewer think nothing was amiss. Regardingthe other performers: Wanda Hawley and Agnes Ayres are competent in theirparts, but that’s it. Nothing stands out about them. Gloria Swanson givesa rather one-dimensional, unsympathetic performance (despite what should bea sympathetic role) which, like her admittedly attractive looks, is hard andbrittle and unyielding. But the one who steals the show is Bebe Daniels,she impressively, movingly and convincingly portrays a tigress that isreally a pussycat without becoming maudlin.

Other plusses include the exceptional, artfully decorated dialogue cards andthe use of color in the Satan Synne segment, it’s so expertly done that itappears nearly like Technicolor, seems to be a film that was made muchlater. And remember, the moral of the story is" "Loyalty and honesty, likecharity, begins at HOME!"

3) Drawn to this by the irresistable and rare chance of seeing Wallace Reid andGloria Swanson working together on a film, I had heard about it throughreference books (and also about Swanson’s recollections of the film notbeing happy due to feeling uncomfortable with Reid at the time), andexpected exactly what I got – a fun piece with some nice touches (Gloria’splayful mood before she feels slighted by Wanda Hawley’s flapper girl; Reidtrashing Hawley’s apartment when he realises she did not have pureintentions towards him after all; Agnes Ayres and Reid sharing a kiss in thewoods while Gloria has gone to fetch a doctor to attend to Ayres,’half-drowned’ when she left; and best of all, Bebe Daniels as the absurdlynamed Satan Synne who is really a domesticated pussy cat chasing young menfor cash to help her sick husband). The Affairs … also benefits fromhaving a lovely series of colour tints throughout. A little overlongperhaps (and too much focus on Hawley at the expense of the other girlsencountered by Tony) but another fascinating early piece from De Mille. Sadto think that Wallace Reid would be dead by early ‘23. The movies’loss.

4) The plot and an analysis is elsewhere here well done with Ron Oliver’sreview. Suffice to say that the hand-tinted titles and the sepia-tonedfilmitself, hinting at reds along with its browns are a real joy to behold.Seeing so many luminaries in one film is also a treat – Reid, Swanson,Moran, Daniels, Ayres.

However, the film could easily have been a half hour shorter with lesswearand tear on the viewer and with virtually little loss in the morality taleor sense of the work. It’s all enjoyable but it does drag abit.

Grapevine and Kino both have excellent prints. Important for itsdirectorand his non-epic style as well as for the presence of Reid and Swanson,butfar from a great or important film.

5) Wallace Reid (as Anatol Spencer) is a wealthy newlywed who is oddlyattracted to various women other than his wife – specifically: WandaHawley (as Emilie), Agnes Ayres (as Annie), and Bebe Daniels (as SatanSynne!). Gloria Swanson (as Vivian) is the wife who seems to develop aroving eye of her own as the running time progresses. BUT, are "TheAffairs of Anatol" really affairs, or just a series of titillatingtemptations?

DeMille's work with mirrors is on display, with the director insertinga skeleton image of Mr. Reid in one scene. Reid was a very big starwhen this film was released (one of the most popular actors in theworld); and, though this isn't really representative, it's nice to seehim. Of the leading ladies, I enjoyed Ms. Ayres over the others,because her simple scenes with Monte Blue seem so ORDINARY whencontrasted with the rest of the goings-on.

DeMille's unlikely mix of titillation, religiosity, and heavy-handedmessage is obviously in full flower. While there are no performancesfor the ages, the scenes with Swanson being hypnotized by TheodoreKosloff are fun. Elliott Dexter (as Max Runyon) is the film's bestsupporting actor; keep a sharp eye on his closing scenes as he'llreveal, through his performance, the affair you might not have beenexpecting…

****** The Affairs of Anatol (1921) Cecil B. DeMille ~ Wallace Reid,Gloria Swanson, Bebe Daniels

6) I know some may find me an oddball for this but I consider The Affairsof Anatol a masterpiece of silent cinema.

Gloria Swanson is one of my favorite actresses and she's remarkable asalways in this one. But I wouldn't see Affairs for just her alone, herpart is rather small compared to the ones she had in Don't Change YourHusband and Why Change Your Wife? However, even though she doesn't getas much screen time, she's still amazing and in my honest opinion, shesteals every scene she's in. Her elegant wardrobe and sophisticatedaura makes her the star. Wallace Reid is great too and watching him,you never would have guessed he was towards the end of his life. Heseemed very strong and handsome to me, although I haven't seen him inmuch (sadly).

Anatol (Reid) and his wife, Vivian (Swanson) are a pretty happy marriedcouple until Anatol starts developing the habit of wanting to rescuewomen with no morals from their fate. This film is long but it HAS tobe to fit it all in! We travel with Anatol and Vivian through manyadventures that continuously test their marriage and happiness.

The cast is absolutely fabulous! Many, many good actors and actresseshere. Obviously, Gloria Swanson and Wallace Reid. Then we havedelightful Bebe Daniels as Satan Synne, a vampish woman with a heart ofgold deep down. Also, there's the wonderful, unique and sadlyunderrated Raymond Hatton who has a short appearance as a violinteacher. Pretty and talented Agnes Ayres plays a country "good girl"and the great character actor Theodore Roberts plays a mean ol'millionaire. Others in the cast worth mentioning are Monte Blue, WandaHawley, Elliott Dexter and Theodore Kosloff.

This movie is stunning visually and is gorgeous to look at. Beautifultints and a score that works with the film like butter works withbread. The costumes and sets are to die for and the whole thing justscreams DeMille. TCM shows this film every now and then but I wouldn'twait that long. For Gloria and DeMille fans this is a MUST.

7) Checked this rare Cecil B. DeMille silent at my local library intriguedby the premise of seeing a Gloria Swanson silent movie in its entiretyfor the first time. Turns out she's sort of a supporting charactersince Anatol is actually a man played by Wallace Reid. He's Anatol,a.k.a. Tony, Spencer whose marriage to Vivian (Swanson) is constantlytested by his involvement in three other women: Emile Dixon (WandaHawley), Annie Elliott (Agnes Ayres), and Satan Synne (Bebe Daniels).Emile is an old school friend of Tony's who's now in the company ofmiddle aged rich man Gordon Bronson (Theodore Roberts). Annie is thewife of country pastor Abner (Monte Blue) whose church money sheunknowingly stole to buy a dress. Ms. Synne is a nightclub entertainerwhose World War I veteran husband is enduring a long hospital stay.About Emile: Tony's just wasting his time trying to get her away frompearls which she loves and is too possessive with her on that frontespecially since he won't do the same about his wife's picture. And hisbreaking the furniture that HE bought! Tsk, tsk. That segment's toolong anyway, though there's some amusement with Raymond Hatton as aviolin teacher. About Annie: I can't believe his kissing her aftersaving her from a drowning which conveniently happens as his wife showsup with a doctor. And it's obviously a pre-Code movie when Annie getsto keep the stolen money with her husband none the wiser! Short enoughin my book. About Satan: This was the most touching segment in themovie with Tony intending to really cheat on his wife (not completelyrealizing vice versa on Vivian's part) and then finding out the truthabout Ms. Synne's husband's illness as he then decides to let her keepthe $3000 as charity. Also, Polly Moran is briefly amusing as anorchestra leader. Also liked Elliot Dexter as Max Runyon, friend of theSpencers and Theodore Kosloff as Nazzer Singh, a hypnotist whotemporarily casts Vivian under a spell. Not a great movie but itcertainly has its merits and DeMille provides some great close-ups inthe final segment with some wonderful color tints that took my breathaway a little. How "happy" the ending is depends on one's view of howtrusting the couple really is but it was satisfactory to my tastes.Worth at least a look for anyone interested in old movies. P.S. Ms.Swanson was born in the same town I was: Chicago, Ill. And the writerof the original story, Arthur Schnitzler, would also pen "Traumnovelle"which would be the source of Stanley Kubrick's final work, Eyes WideShut.

"The Affairs of Anatole" is another marriage infidelity film fromProducer/Director Cecil B. De Mille. Its a white washed story of asocialite's affairs with three women told in three separate stories.

Wealthy socialite Anatole DeWitt Spencer…now there's a moniker(Wallace Reid) has been married to his wife Vivian (Gloria Swanson) fora mere ten weeks and feels that the "honey" is gone from the honeymoonand grows restless.

While night clubbing with Vivian and his close friend Max Runyon(Elliott Dexter) he sees an old school sweetheart, Emilie Dixon (WandaHawley) in the company of a rich old playboy, Gordon Bronson (TheodoreRoberts). Feeling that he needs to "save her soul", he tells Vivianthat he must save Emilie from herself. Anatole sets her up in anapartment and tries to turn her into a socialite…a sort of "My FairLady" scenario. He tries to get her to throw away the jewelry thatBronson had given her, but she hides the jewels from him. Once a golddigger, always a gold digger, Emilie goes back to Bronson and…………..

Anatole goes back to Vivian and the two decide on a second honeymoon. Afarmer's wife, Annie Elliot (Agnes Ayres) has just stolen church fundsfrom her husband Abner (Monte Blue) that he had been keeping for thelocal church. As luck would have it, the despondent Annie is justjumping from a bridge in a suicide attempt as Anatole and Vivian's boatis rowing under the bridge. Anatole saves the woman and brings herashore to administer first aid. While Vivan goes for help, Annie seesher chance to redeem herself by stealing Anatole's fat wallet that hasfallen conveniently to the ground. Playing up to him, she steals thewallet and………….

Next Anatole meets "vamp" Satan Synne…there's another name (BebeDaniels) who is a thinly disguised prostitute whom Anatole decides tosave. Satan in reality is Mary Deacon who is living the life to getmoney to finance her war veteran husband's many operations. Completewith an octopus' tentacled cloak, she puts her coils around Anatole toobtain the $3,000 required for her husband's latest operationand…………………

Repentant, Anatole returns to Vivian yet again only to find that she ison an "all nighter" with his best friend Max and……………….

Even though De Mille tries to paint each of these ladies as pure ofheart, there's no doubt what is REALLY going on. The fact that Viviankeeps taking Anatole back after each affair is a little hard tobelieve. But hey, this was 1921.

Wallace Reid was now a major star as was the diminutive Gloria Swanson.Reid, a life long alcoholic, was now addicted to morphine resultingfrom an accident in 1919. This combination proved lethal and Reid diedprematurely at the age of 31 in 1923. Bebe Daniels was just coming intoher own as a star after years in Harold Lloyd comedies. Agnes Ayresreceived a measure of immortality, as the girl carried off by RudolphValentino in "The Shiek" (1921).

Others in the cast include Theodore Kosloff as an Indian mystic,Raymond Hatton as a music teacher, Polly Moran as an orchestra leaderand William (don't call me Hoppy) Boyd as a party guest at theapartment of Emilie.

Interesting but……….

9) In the era from 1910-1928, there were a lot of very melodramaticmorality tale movies. The audiences loved them, but to today's viewers,they might seem a bit predictable and silly. As for me, I've seen somany of them that after a while they tend to blend together in my mind.They all seem to involve a husband who begins to wander and ultimately,they return to their good wives by the end of the film.

While this one appears to be such a film, at first the husband (WallaceReid) seems to have the purest of intentions. He meets an oldgirlfriend from 8th grade and tries to pull her away from a life whereshe is being supported by rich men. The problem is, she LIKES this sortof life and Reid is already married to Glroia Swanson and his wifenaturally resents this! However, because this IS basically a formulaicfilm, you also know that despite the eventual breakup of the marriage,you know by convention that they MUST be reunited by the final frame!That is my biggest problem with the film–it was generally toopredictable and too telegraphed and obvious. For example, when thehusband TRIES to be unfaithful, he goes to the home (more of a lair,actually) of Madame Satan Synne (played by Bebe Daniels) to be vamped!This part left me with mixed feelings actually, as the over-the-tophome and the octopus outfit she worse was really funny and that deepdown she WAS a good woman! But, it all still seemed rather formulaic atthe core. Yep,…despite falling in her clutches, only a few minuteslater he was back to Gloria.

10) This is a soap opera.Very silly and shallow. But it just goes to showshallow entertainment will never go out of style. Gloria Swanson is GloriaSwanson, Chic, sophisticated. Somehow looking at her she doesn’t come offasnaive at all. This is a very worldy film and the sr=ets are teriffic! Amustsee for any Gloria Swanson fans out there.

For the most part, Edwin L. Marin's Affairs of a Gentleman is that of ab-grade murder mystery that possesses a somewhat stagey, artificialquality, though a plentiful of twist and turns to keep our curiosityengaged, as well as the characters being generated quite effectively,which in result the film is leisurely paced. Beautiful blonde LeilaHyams gets top female billing and is most certainly playing a far moreedgy and boldly assertive character then one might be use to seeing herplay. However, her screen time is rather limited and is quite possiblyoutshined by two other strikingly beautiful ladies in Patricia Ellisand Dorothy Burgess. With that being said, Affairs of a Gentleman isthe probability of interest to fans of the films leading stars,particularly that of the women, and shouldn't garner much attention orinterest to anyone unknowing of the films leading stars.

"L’affaire" is an unpleasant mean little movie.A business man (Hossein)wants to take revenge on his own brother who had his family (wife andand daughter) killed,to latch on to the whole family business.So hebegins the task,which involves man of straw,speculating on theStock,compromising photographs,nothing new under the sun.

If you want to have a look at the famous "tour d’argent"restaurant,where the villain savors caviar with a wonderful view ofNotre-Dame ,this dud might interest you.Otherwise,avoid this updatedridiculous "Roger la Honte" .

Although, Boisset’s work stands as a modest television movie, it deservestobe watched, especially if you are mesmerized by this Seznec’s affair thatcaused so much sensation in France and it divided the public opinion. Asforthe director, well we can say that Boisset feels compassion and pity forhismain character and he tends to despise the representatives of justice:policemen and judges during the trial because these last ones think he’sguilty about Quemeneur’s disappearance. His work is also a denunciation ofinjustice and miscarriage of justice.

With all these remarks, you can qualify Boisset’s film as demagogicbecauseBoisset agrees with the public opinion that regards the Seznec Affair asthesymbol of miscarriage of justice. But by this way, he’s just giving us hisopinion and attempts to relate as precisely as possible the events relatedin Denis Langlois’s book about the Seznec affair. Moreover, Seznec’scharacter is very well built by Christophe Malavoy.

An honest and by moments touching television movie.

2) At first sight,Duvivier seems to follow in André Cayatte's footsteps.Atthe time,the latter director had launched a crusade against all themiscarriages of justice and had begun to champion any good causegoing.But further acquaintance shows this:"l'affaire Maurizius" is aDuvivier movie .In Cayatte's movies,the problems are finally generallysolved: in "Nous Sommes Tous Des Assassins" ,René was granted apardon,in "Les Risques du Métier" ,the schoolteacher wasrehabilitated.Even when the story turns black ("Le Glaive et laBalance" or "Justice est Faite") ,Cayatte " manages to limit thedamage" so to speak.One should note that the young lead ,JacquesChabassol,was part of Cayatte's "Avant le Deluge" (1953).

In "l'Affaire Maurizius",no one was saved:the judge has lost his sonwho is ashamed of his father ,the son has lost all his illusions,thegorgeous reluctant femme fatale has turned into a prematurely agedlady,her former lover is now living on the fringes of society,and thechastised innocent ……his fate is sealed as soon as the filmbegins…

….because,when the movie begins,"L'Affaire Maurizius" is an old oneeverybody wants to forget.That an innocent man may have spent seventeenyears in jail does not seem to move the bourgeois judge (CharlesVanel),jealous of his privileges.Little by little,throughflashbacks,scenes of the past resurfaces again .The judge 's sonbelieves in justice and wants to save the prisoner(Daniel Gélin)who was"burried alive" .But Waremme (Anton Walbrook) tries to explain to himthat the society scoffs at the law:while he is talking to the desperateyoung man,two dancers appear as shadow graphs on the window.This is thekey to the film and to Duvivier's black world.

"L'Affaire Maurizius" is wrapped in mystery: all the flashbacks arefilmed in places which seem secret and where a danger seemsimpending.The film sets are bare when they depict the past,emphasizingthe characters who,unfortunately,with the exception of Vanel,sometimesdisplay a tendency to overact.This misty atmosphere will emerge againin later works such as "Marianne de Ma Jeunesse" or "La ChambreArdente".

Some objections to "l'Affaire Maurizius" remain: overacting (AntonWalbrook verges on ridicule),and Madeleine Robinson's underwrittenpart:she barely appears ten minutes whereas she plays a pivotal role inthe screenplay.Her relationship with her younger sister (EleonoraRossi-Drago) is only skimmed over whereas it is essential to the plot.

However,like almost all the movies Duvivier made ,it is a must: hispessimism leaves the viewer no hope : the last scene could be subtitled"out of the blue … and into the black ,they give you this but you payfor that,and once you're gone you can never come back.." (Neil Young)

Irène Jacob plays the most active part and she is at her best, and Imean even better than she used to do in these wonderful Kieslowski’smovies where she was a little bit instrumentalized by the director. Thepolish filmmaker was a genius and Irene was his muse, so that’s why shehad a very limited register and chance to portray, by example, anobscure or amoral character. At "Marcorelle", nevertheless, Irèneappears in a much more complex and rather cynical role, she had toreplace her usual candid kindness with a tougher background and she didit flawless in that way. Agneska is a sexy villainess, an extortionistwithout remorse but she indeed has a cause; she’s full of resentmentbecause she is one of these "second class" Europeans. As the main andwealthy countries of the European Community –like France- are proud ontheir arrogant, ambivalent speech about tolerance and integration, inthe meanwhile most of the citizens from the eastern nations aredevastated by misery and their children doomed to be criminals orhookers, but these supposed-progressist richest nations lock theirdoors in their faces. The hopeless faces of the illegal immigrantslooking for a opportunity. That’s a very serious matter but carefullyfeatured in this movie, without falling into the cheap politicallyincorrect stuff. I do already think this has a lot to do with some kindof guilty consciousness about the high contrast between the two sidesof contemporary European society.

The film essentially works as a light thriller-comedy with a critic,reflexive shade and even a dark sense of humor, mostly based in thesolid performance of the cast and this is the brightest point. Thestoryline could have been better focused and slightly more dynamic, butworks fine at its way and the result is fairly well done. This moviereally deserved to have a much better distribution worldwide or atleast to be released to the mainstream of home video market. It’s aclever movie with sympathetic, charismatic characters and quite aninteresting content.

Thieves attack the couriers of Lyons,steal the money and kill the coachdriver.

Then begins a strange case of mistaken identity.Because he resemblesone of the criminals,a man who's done nothing is recognized bywitnesses ("I could tell it was him from the sound of his voice" ,ablind man affirms).His wife (a wonderful Dita Parlo,the female star of"la Grande Illusion")will pull all the stops to save him ,and however,he used to cheat her !Her unfortunate intervention is deeply touchingand we side with her.

The trial is a good moment but it is dwarfed by the final scenes:around the guillotine,the crowd is having a wild time ,even the trueculprit is watching (to be sure his "replacement" is dead.) MauriceLehmann had a very clever idea to end his movie: after the innocent'shead has rolled in the sawdust,we see it made of clay:we are in a waxmuseum where the judge feels deep remorse.Time has passed ,and thetruth is known,but it's too late.

Claude Autant-Lara used to work with Lehmann at the time (he co-signed"Fric Frac" with him two years later) and his anti bourgeois anarchisttouch can be felt when the wrong man inveighs against the society andtheir justice.

2) It's definitely a Man's Life in the courier business. In 18th centuryFrance you were still known as a courier, travelled by stage coach andferried your cargo – bearer bonds, legal documents, even cash – in abriefcase or strongbox and robbery and occasional death wereoccupational hazards. Today you're known as a mule, travel by jet andcarry your cargo – cocaine or better – on or more often INSIDE yourperson and twenty years in a Third World slammer or increasinglyeternity on a slab should the packaging burst in your stomach are thenew occupational hazards.

This movie is based on a real case in which an innocent man who had thebad fortune to resemble a criminal paid with his life. Pierre Blancharplays both a thief/murderer – the driver of the stage coach in whichthe courier was travelling was killed during the robbery – Andre Duboscand the innocent look-alike Joseph Lesurques who has the good fortuneto be married to Dita Parlo, one of the shining lights of 30s cinemawho was unforgettable in Renoir's La Grande Illusion. This was ClaudeAutant-Lara in his social-conscience phase and after a slow, measuredstart he hits his stride in the wake of the robbery exploring mobpsychology and revelling in the irony of a blind man being a keywitness that sent an innocent man to the guillotine, we are allmurderers indeed. Hitchcock explored similar territory in The Wrong Manin which Henry Fonda was subjected to a lot of discomfort and his wife,Vera Miles even more but in the end the truth emerged in plenty of timefor Fonda to walk free, not so, alas, here. Not perhaps an idealsubject for a world on the brink of war but a fine film nevertheless.