at Lumière

PostED ON 22.10.2022

Marlène Jobert introducing ‘Rider in the Rain’ by René Clément

"René Clément didn't know me, had never seen me in the cinema; the request came from the producer Serge Silberman and his scriptwriter Sébastien Japrisot. They had seen me in ‘Astragale’. We shot a double version, and I didn't speak English, but I had a coach and I think I did pretty well. It went well with René Clément; it was only during the first few days that things didn’t go so great. He would say the lines before me, so that I would say them exactly as he wanted, so I didn't feel very comfortable. And then his wife, Bella, intervened one day in her Slavic accent and said, "Darling, let the child do it, give her time, wait..."

The difficulty I had with Charles Bronson was that he didn't speak a word of French, and despite that, there were still exchanges of looks and sympathy between us. Annie Cordy is magnificent in the film; we didn't expect her to be in it. Clément chose her. ‘Rider’... did very well, 4 million moviegoers I think, and was a success internationally too. Thanks to Bronson, of course. I am very moved to be in Lyon because I did not expect people to remember me. I can't believe that everything I've done is remembered in this way! And that I remember it too! I wasn't conscious of 'making a career', but I was passionate, and I gave it my all.

© Pedro Rojo Romeo

Vincent Lindon introducing Running on Empty by Sidney Lumet

"I am very, very much in love with this movie. I've seen it fifteen times, it represents everything that touches me in life, from the teenager to the adult characters. It's Lumet's greatest work and one of my top ten important films. I discovered it in 1988 at the movie theatre, I remember wanting to be the teenager, now I want to be the father. I'm very glad you're seeing it. I give you all a big hug. I know you’re going to love it."

 

© Daniel Whittington

Claude Lelouch introducing Live for Life

"It was the story of a guy who was admirable in his life as an investigator, but incompetent in his private life. I started with an anecdote from my wife at the time, who I was about to separate from, because she thought I was a fool in my private life. I absolutely wanted Trintignant for the role, but he was not convinced. He explained that nothing could top the success of ‘A Man and a Woman’. So I chose Montand. Then I went to see Jeanne Moreau and she told me, ‘I'm not going to be cheated on in a movie by an idiot like Montand’. So I offered the role to Annie Girardot.”

© Daniel Whittington