Coup de Torchon
Encyclopedia
Coup de Torchon is a 1981 French film
adaptation of Jim Thompson
's 1964 novel Pop. 1280
, directed by Bertrand Tavernier
. The film follows the novel relatively faithfully, but changes its setting from a West Texas
boom town to a small town in French West Africa
.
) is an ineffectual local constable with a cheating wife and laughable job. He accepts condescension from his superiors and his wife with good humor, as his antisocial personality allows him to tolerate such abuse. However, he soon realizes that he can use his position to gain vengeance with impunity, and he starts to kill everyone who has regarded him as a fool.
French Film
French Film is a 2008 British comedy film directed by Jackie Oudney and starring Anne-Marie Duff, Hugh Bonneville, Victoria Hamilton, Douglas Henshall and Eric Cantona. The film was shot in Spring 2007 at various locations around London including Waterloo station and the BFI Southbank.-Plot:Two...
adaptation of Jim Thompson
Jim Thompson (writer)
James Myers Thompson was an American author and screenwriter, known for his pulp crime fiction....
's 1964 novel Pop. 1280
Pop. 1280
Pop. 1280 is a novel by Jim Thompson . Although not in print at the time of his death , Pop. 1280 is part of Orion's Crime Masterworks series, a testament to the gradual rehabilitation and recognition of Jim Thompson's literary legacy: a clear exposition of an especially bleak species of American...
, directed by Bertrand Tavernier
Bertrand Tavernier
Bertrand Tavernier is a French director, screenwriter, actor, and producer.-Life and career:Tavernier was born in Lyon, the son of Geneviève and René Tavernier, a publicist and writer, several years president of the French PEN club. Tavernier wanted to become a filmmaker since the age of thirteen...
. The film follows the novel relatively faithfully, but changes its setting from a West Texas
West Texas
West Texas is a vernacular term applied to a region in the southwestern quadrant of the United States that primarily encompasses the arid and semi-arid lands in the western portion of the state of Texas....
boom town to a small town in French West Africa
French West Africa
French West Africa was a federation of eight French colonial territories in Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan , French Guinea , Côte d'Ivoire , Upper Volta , Dahomey and Niger...
.
Plot
Lucien Cordier (Philippe NoiretPhilippe Noiret
Philippe Noiret was a French film actor.-Biography:Noiret's father was in the clothes trade. Philippe was an indifferent scholar and attended several prestigious Paris schools, including the Lycée Janson de Sailly. He failed several times to pass his baccalauréat exams, so he decided to study...
) is an ineffectual local constable with a cheating wife and laughable job. He accepts condescension from his superiors and his wife with good humor, as his antisocial personality allows him to tolerate such abuse. However, he soon realizes that he can use his position to gain vengeance with impunity, and he starts to kill everyone who has regarded him as a fool.
Cast
- Philippe NoiretPhilippe NoiretPhilippe Noiret was a French film actor.-Biography:Noiret's father was in the clothes trade. Philippe was an indifferent scholar and attended several prestigious Paris schools, including the Lycée Janson de Sailly. He failed several times to pass his baccalauréat exams, so he decided to study...
as Lucien Cordier - Isabelle HuppertIsabelle HuppertIsabelle Anne Madeleine Huppert is a French actress who has appeared in over 90 film and television productions since 1971. She has had 14 films in official competition at the Cannes Film Festival, and won the Best Actress Award twice, for Violette Nozière and La pianiste . She is also the most...
as Rose - Jean-Pierre MarielleJean-Pierre MarielleJean-Pierre Marielle is a French actor. He has played in more than a hundred movies in which he brought life to a very large diversity of roles, from the banal citizen , to the serial killer , to the World War II hero , to the compromised spy , to the has-been actor Jean-Pierre Marielle (born...
as Le Peron and his brother - Stéphane AudranStéphane AudranStéphane Audran is a French film and television actress, known for her performances in Oscar winning movies such as Le charme discret de la bourgeoisie and Babette's Feast and in critically acclaimed films like The Big Red One and Violette Nozière .She married...
as Huguette Cordier - Eddy MitchellEddy MitchellEddy Mitchell is a French singer and actor. He began his career in the late 1950s, with the group Les Chaussettes Noires , taking his name from the American expatriate tough-guy actor Eddie Constantine...
as Nono - Guy MarchandGuy MarchandGuy Marchand is a French actor, musician and singer. He is best known for his role as the main character in the French police procedural series Nestor Burma.- Filmography :* 1970 : Boulevard du Rhum, directed by Robert Enrico...
as Marcel Chavasson - Irène Skobline as Anne, the teacher
- Michel Beaune as Vanderbrouck
- Jean ChampionJean ChampionJean Champion was a French film actor. He appeared in 60 films between 1962 and 1996.-Selected filmography:* The Umbrellas of Cherbourg * Le Cercle rouge * The Invitation...
as Priest
- Victor Garrivier as Mercaillou
- Gérard Hernandez as Leonelli
- Abdoulaye DiopAbdoulaye DiopAbdoulaye Diop is the former ambassador of Mali to the United States and was appointed to the position on September 8, 2003. Diop received a Master of Arts in International Relations from the International Institute of Public Administration in Paris, France, a Master of Arts in Diplomacy and...
as Fête Nat - Daniel Langlet as Paulo
- François Perrot as Colonel Tramichel
- Raymond HermantierRaymond HermantierRaymond Hermantier was a French actor.Raymond Hermantier aspired to acting since the age of 17. His training was interrupted by WWII during which he served in the Free French Forces, until the liberation of Paris. Decorated by General Charles de Gaulle, he resumed his acting career immediately...
as Blind man - Mamadou Dioumé as Mamadou
- Samba Mané as Vendredi
Awards and honors
- Academy AwardsAcademy AwardsAn Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
(USA)- Nominated: Best Foreign Language Film
- César Awards (France)
- Nominated: Best Actor – Leading Role (Philippe Noiret)
- Nominated: Best Actor – Supporting Role (Jean-Pierre Marielle)
- Nominated: Best Actor – Supporting Role (Eddy Mitchell)
- Nominated: Best Actress – Leading Role (Isabelle Huppert)
- Nominated: Best Actress – Supporting Role (Stéphane Audran)
- Nominated: Best Director (Bertrand Tavernier
- Nominated: Best Editing (Armand Psenny)
- Nominated: Best Film
- Nominated: Best Production Design (Alexandre Trauner)
- Nominated: Best Writing (Jean Aurenche and Bertrand Tavernier)
- French Syndicate of Cinema CriticsFrench Syndicate of Cinema CriticsThe French Syndicate of Cinema Critics has awarded 4 prizes - the Prix Méliès annually since 1946 to the best French film of the year. The Prix Léon Moussinac, awarded to the Best Foreign Film category was added in 1967...
(France)- Won: Best Film (tied with Garde à vueGarde à vueGarde à vue is a 1981 French film directed by Claude Miller and starring Romy Schneider, Michel Serrault, Lino Ventura and Guy Marchand. It was based on the British novel Brainwash, by John Wainwright....
)
- Won: Best Film (tied with Garde à vue