Great French Directors Trivia Quiz

Answer: Francois Truffaut

"The 400 Blows" was a sensation when it was first released, breaking new ground cinematically and winning international praise and awards.
Truffaut went on to direct a number of films which today are recognized among the great classics of French Cinema, including "Tirez Sur Le Pianiste", "Jules et Jim", "La Nuit Americaine" and "Le Dernier Metro".

Answer: Ma Nuit Chez Maude (My Night At Maude's)

Louis Malle worked not only in France but also in America. His best known English language films are "Pretty Baby", which caused considerable controversy for its story line about a young girl growing up in a New Orleans brothel and being groomed for stardom, and "Atlantic City", which starred Burt Lancaster and Susan Sarandon.
"Le Souffle Au Coeur" was also controversial for dealing with the topic of incest.
"My Night At Maude's" was directed by Eric Rohmer.

Answer: Jacques Demy

Jacques Demy was not a prolific director. His first feature film was "Lola", made as a homage to the great Hollywood musicals, as was "Les Demoiselles de Rochefort". Today he's best remembered for those, as well as the beautiful "Parapluies de Cherbourg".
His collaborator on these films was composer Michel Legrand.
Demy was married to director Agnes Varda, herself a leading light of the New Wave.

Answer: Le Samourai

"Le Samourai" was inspired by the 1942 film "This Gun For Hire", which was directed by Frank Tuttle and starred Alan Ladd as the hit man.
"Le Doulos" starred Jean-Paul Belmondo as an informer.
"Le Cercle Rouge" was a heist film which starred Delon, Yves Montand and Gian Maria Volonte.
"L'armee des Ombres" ("Army Of Shadows") was a film about the World War II French Resistance, and starred Paul Meurisse, Lino Ventura and Simone Signoret.
All four films were directed by Melville.

Answer: L'amour En Fuite

The Antoine Doinel series of films by Francois Truffaut began with "The 400 Blows". There were five films in the series, although the second, "Antoine Et Collette", was not a feature film but a segment of a compendium film called "Love At 20".
The other three in order were "Baisers Voles" ("Stolen Kisses"), "Domicile Conjugal" ("Bed and Board") and "L'amour En Fuite" ("Love On The Run").
All of the films starred Jean-Pierre Leaud as Antoine Doinel.

Answer: Marcel Carne

Directed by Marcel Carne, and starring Arletty, Jean-Louis Barrault, Marcel Herrand, Pierre Renoir and Maria Casares, "Les Enfants du Paradis" ("Children Of Paradise") is set in the theatrical world of 19th Century Paris.
It was made under appalling conditions during the Nazi occupation of France, but you'd never know it.
The screenplay was by Carne's long time collaborator Jacques Prevert.
Marcel Carne was one of the key figures in the poetic realism movement. Apart from "Les Enfants du Paradis" he is best known for "Les Visiteurs du Soir", "Le Jour Se Leve" and "Le Quai des Brumes".

Answer: Jacques Tati

M. Hulot made his first appearance in the charming "M. Hulot's Holiday", and also featured in "Mon Oncle", "Playtime" and Traffic".
Tati was a perfectionist, and spent considerable time over each of his films - years in some cases - which probably explains why he completed only five feature films during his career. His debut feature was "Jour de Fete", which did not feature M. Hulot.

Answer: La Peau Douce

"La Bataille du Rail", "Jeux Interdits" and "Is Paris Burning?" were all set during World War II. "La Bataille du Rail" was about a Resistance unit of railway workers. The beautiful and heartbreaking "Jeux Interdits" ("Forbidden Games") told how two young children dealt with the horror and loss of war by making an animal cemetery.

It featured remarkable performances from a very young Georges Poujouly and Brigitte Fossey. "Is Paris Burning?" was an international co-production about the liberation of Paris, and featured a huge international cast. "La Peau Douce" was directed by Francois Truffaut.

Answer: Claude Chabrol

Claude Chabrol is credited with starting the French New Wave.
He made 57 films, beginning in 1958 with "Le Beau Serge" and worked right up to his death in 2010.
He was a master of the mystery genre and is often referred to as 'The French Hitchcock'.
His films include "Le Boucher", "Les Noces Rouges", "Juste Avant la Nuit", "Que La Bete Meure" and "Le Cri du Hibou".
He was married at one time to the actress Stephane Audran.

Answer: Caught

While they don't achieve the level of greatness of films such as "La Regle Du Jeu" and "La Grande Illusion", nevertheless Renoir's American films stand up well today, and are worth seeing. The first was "Swamp Water" (1941) which starred Walter Brennan, Walter Huston, Dana Andrews and Anne Baxter.
"The Southerner" (1945) starred Zachary Scott, Betty Field, J. Carroll Naish and Beulah Bondi.
"The Woman On The Beach" (1947) is a film noir starring Joan Bennett, Robert Ryan and Charles Bickford.
"Caught" is a very good thriller directed by Max Ophuls. It starred James Mason, Barbara Bel Geddes and Robert Ryan.