L'affaire est dans le sac (English: It's in the Bag) is a 1932 French comedy film, directed by Pierre Prévert and written by his more famous brother, poet and screenwriter Jacques Prévert, based on a script by Ákos Ráthonyi.[1] It was Pierre Prévert's directional debut. While not a box office success at the time, it's nowadays considered a cult film.[2]
Plot
editThe plot involves a kidnapping. A hatter, Benjamin Déboisé, with an accomplice, undertakes to kidnap the son of Hollister, a millionaire, abducting him in a bag. However, they mistakenly kidnap Hollister himself instead. Hollister, bored with life, is actually delighted to be involved in the adventure, while Hollister's daughter and a second accomplice fall in love, and Déboisé eventually disappears with the ransom.[3][4]
Cast
editÉtienne Decroux played the kidnapper Benjamin Déboisé. Other actors included a young Jean-Paul Le Chanois (billed as Jean-Paul Dreyfus), Julien Carette, Philippe Richard, Anthony Gildès, and Jacques Brunius. Future screenwriter Louis Chavance appears as a passer-by.[5][6][3]
Production
editThe film was produced by Pathé Distribution and was shot in eight days on a limited budget at the Pathé-Natan studios in Joinville-le-Pont. It premiered in France on 25 November 1932 and was not a success, although it went on to become something of a cult film.[1][3]
At the time the film was made, Jaques Prévert had just formed October Group, a left wing agitprop troupe, and many of the film's technicians and some of the actors became involved with that group.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c "L'affaire est dans le sac de Pierre Prévert (1932)" [Pierre Prévert's "It's in the Bag" (1932)]. La Belle Equipe. Retrieved 15 May 2017. (in French)
- ^ Crisp, Colin (29 June 2015). "French Cinema—A Critical Filmography: Volume 1, 1929–1939". Indiana University Press – via Google Books.
- ^ a b c "L'Affaire est dans le sac" [It's in the Bag]. UniFrance. Retrieved 15 May 2017. (in French)
- ^ "L'affaire est dans le sac" [It's in the Bag]. Comme au Cinéma. Retrieved 15 May 2017. (in French)
- ^ "L'Affaire est dans le sac" [It's in the Bag]. AlloCine. Retrieved 15 May 2017. (in French)
- ^ "L'affaire est dans le sac" [It's in the Bag]. Télérama. Retrieved 15 May 2017. (in French)