Remembering Claude Chabrol (1930-2010)

So, as you all know, Chabrol has passed away, so it would be great if you could share what you remember most about this director.

RIP on behalf of everyone, just so we don't end up with an "RIP" thread.

I'll write a quick note about his first two films I saw quite a while ago, so here’s what sticks in my mind:

lijep Sergea—In short, I absolutely love this movie... from that opening shot of the bus pulling up until the very end, you experience this beautiful small-town atmosphere paired with a melodrama about two friends, one of whom has taken a wrong turn in life. Some people might find the ending a bit pathetic, but I didn't.

The Cousins—Another Blain / Brialy pairing, though this time set in an urban environment. It’s a story about two cousins: one moves from the countryside to the city believing in honesty, goodness, and principles, while the other is carefree, somewhat amoral, and cunning. The direction here is excellent and atmospheric, focusing on the naive Charles and his collision with the concrete jungle.
That interior (Paulov's apartment) really stuck with me as an incredibly melancholy space, serving as a reflection of that gritty, urban, decadent lifestyle. The music throughout the film also left a lasting impression on me.

Basically, in both films, you can see Chabrol's relationship with the small towns where he spent much of his youth, something he discussed in that documentary NBC aired a few months back.

Chabrol has plenty of other work out there, so please jump in so I'm not just standing here shaving alone.

To me, Serz wasn't even all that special, though I will admit *La Cérémonie* and *The Biches* are quite good.

His absolute favorite has to be *Le Bucheur*. It’s about this unassuming butcher who also happens to be a killer.

One really should mention *Une Affaire de Femmes*, that story about a woman. It’s easily his most depressing film—and honestly, perhaps the most depressing American film I've ever seen.

I have to admit, I haven't actually sat through a ton of his stuff. I’ve mostly spent my time watching Truffaut and Godard instead..

From what I have seen, though, I really liked: Le Bucheur, The Biches, Madame Bovary, and the one about the unfaithful wife.

I haven't exactly sat through a marathon of 😢, but here goes nothing:

Le Bucheur - goldenhound32 kept it brief, but they hit the nail on the head. Excellent work.

L'enfer - an incredible study of human jealousy, even if this one pushes things to a bit of an extreme.😁

L'oeil du malin - I'm almost speechless. The themes bear a striking resemblance to The Talented Mr. Ripley, except this is a hundred times better. Highly recommended.

In short, they are all solid films, though I haven't made much of an effort to watch anything else. A man would have to die before I bother looking into more. 🙈

1. The Butcher
2. The Venison
3. Naive Girls
4. Ceremony
5. Beautiful Serge

One of the most prolific news junkies out there, he had a knack for dissecting small-town mindsets, masterfully deconstructing Hitchcock with a calculated precision, and coating nearly every film in a layer of subtle, measured cynicism...🙏

I’d say The Biches is his absolute best, followed closely by Le Bucheur.
I prefer watching his films on my own, in solitude. Sometimes I get the impression he maintains a certain distance from the work, allowing the viewer to construct their own perspective—which is exactly why I appreciate him.

Before the screening of Mesar, NBC is going to air a 20-minute clip from a vintage talk show where Claude Chabrol was a guest back in 1978.

The full episode actually ran nearly three and a half hours—not even counting the feature film "Alice or the Last Escape," which runs about ninety minutes. But the cheapskates over at NBC are only giving us a 20-minute snippet. It's pathetic.

Can anyone remind me who the guests were alongside Claude Chabrol on that episode of 3-2-1 Kreni?

I find myself wondering about that too... that man in black standing behind the curtain 😁

It’s such a shame they only aired a tiny fragment of the broadcast... something along the lines of "No child ever grows up wanting to be a critic"... or some variation of that thought 🤣
The film itself is absolutely superb! Aside from that, the only other thing I've managed to watch was lijep Sergea

The Beverly Hills cinema kicked off a special series this Thursday:
An in memoriam tribute to Claude Chabrol

Over the next ten days, they're showing 8 films on NBC's program:

Thanks for the Chocolate -> Merci pour le chocolat
The Biches -> Les bonnes femmes
La femme infidèle -> La femme infidèle
Le Bucheur -> Le boucher
Que la bête meure -> Que la bête meure
Violette Nozière -> Violette Nozière
Une affaire de femmes -> Une affaire de femmes
La cérémonie -> La cérémonie

🙂

Just a quick heads-up from Lisa Davis46. I'm heading to see "The Naive Girl" tomorrow at 7. Count me in.

Lisa Davis46 said:The Beverly Hills cinema kicked off a special series this Thursday:
An in memoriam tribute to Claude Chabrol

Over the next ten days, they're showing 8 films on NBC's program:

Thanks for the Chocolate -> Merci pour le chocolat
The Biches -> Les bonnes femmes
La femme infidèle -> La femme infidèle
Le Bucheur -> Le boucher
Que la bête meure -> Que la bête meure
Violette Nozière -> Violette Nozière
Une affaire de femmes -> Une affaire de femmes
La cérémonie -> La cérémonie

🙂

Great. Since the Golden Gates programming is usually just a carbon copy of what they show in Beverly Hills, I might as well expect to see it in Miami too.

I’ve realized I actually want to see every single movie on this list. Not exactly great news for my bank account.😢

I think Claude Chabrol is the one new director I’ve never actually given a fair shake. I tried watching 'Le Bucheur' twice—twice!—but couldn't even make it past the 20-minute mark both times. Honestly? Boring as hell. Then I checked out 'Merci pour le chocolat' and it was just totally bland—the kind of movie you forget the second the credits roll.
If anyone's got better recs, lay them on me.

I was absolutely floored by Madame Bovary—it’s definitely something you need to experience firsthand 😁

Chabrol is great. I especially love zvijer morati umrijeti and nevjeran zen. The beautiful Serz is also excellent.

I caught a screening of "The Biches" at the local cinema yesterday—my first time seeing it—and honestly, I’m still reeling from the experience.

It was so incredible that I don't even know where to start.

As soon as I saw that the cinematographer was the legendary Henri Decae during the opening credits, I knew I was in for something special. And man, was I right.

The beginning of the film is brilliant. Those first twenty or thirty minutes are directed so masterfully; the cutting (I have to highlight those excellent, Hitchcock-style subjective shots in the car a few times) creates such a vivid sense of the city at night (thanks to Henri Decae 🙏), all while being anchored by an incredibly evocative performance from Bernadetta Lafont.

What really blew me away, though, was the actual structure. You can truly see Chabrol's talent on display here in how he weaves genre and non-genre elements together. It’s executed so skillfully that it almost pushes you into a state of—well, a very pleasant kind of confusion. Just when you think you’ve settled into a standard drama, the tone shifts abruptly with the sudden appearance of a mystical poacher accompanied by music that cranks up the tension. I think that whole forest scene, and the way it’s staged, says everything you need to know about the director's vision and his take on the cinematic experience.

That scene with the tiger at the zoo is an unforgettable piece of imagery.

The ending is also gutsy and fantastic because it leaves the viewer to draw their own conclusions. To me, it felt like a biting commentary from Chabrol regarding the "bright lights of the big city."

By the end, I realized I hadn't moved an inch in my seat—it practically glued me to the chair.

"The Biches" is a true cry from an innovative modernist, and it's the kind of film that stays with you.

I remember my first encounter with Claude Chabrol. I was young and hadn't really gotten used to that style of filmmaking yet. But, just like Mark Wood79 said—I was glued to my seat for the entire 112 minutes.

The film I'm talking about is The Biches 👍
.

Mark Wood79 said:Just a quick heads-up from Lisa Davis46. I'm heading to see "The Naive Girl" tomorrow at 7. Count me in.

😉 🙂
I didn't catch that one, but I'm trying to squeeze in everything I can next week.

Mark Wood79 said:I caught a screening of "The Biches" at the local cinema yesterday—my first time seeing it—and honestly, I’m still reeling from the experience.

It was so incredible that I don't even know where to start.

As soon as I saw that the cinematographer was the legendary Henri Decae during the opening credits, I knew I was in for something special. And man, was I right.

The beginning of the film is brilliant. Those first twenty or thirty minutes are directed so masterfully; the cutting (I have to highlight those excellent, Hitchcock-style subjective shots in the car a few times) creates such a vivid sense of the city at night (thanks to Henri Decae 🙏), all while being anchored by an incredibly evocative performance from Bernadetta Lafont.

What really blew me away, though, was the actual structure. You can truly see Chabrol's talent on display here in how he weaves genre and non-genre elements together. It’s executed so skillfully that it almost pushes you into a state of—well, a very pleasant kind of confusion. Just when you think you’ve settled into a standard drama, the tone shifts abruptly with the sudden appearance of a mystical poacher accompanied by music that cranks up the tension. I think that whole forest scene, and the way it’s staged, says everything you need to know about the director's vision and his take on the cinematic experience.

That scene with the tiger at the zoo is an unforgettable piece of imagery.

The ending is also gutsy and fantastic because it leaves the viewer to draw their own conclusions. To me, it felt like a biting commentary from Chabrol regarding the "bright lights of the big city."

By the end, I realized I hadn't moved an inch in my seat—it practically glued me to the chair.

"The Biches" is a true cry from an innovative modernist, and it's the kind of film that stays with you.

I caught the newer "Merci pour le chocolat" on Thursday,
it actually turned out to be a freebie since it was an opening screening.🙂
Anyway, I was just as impressed. Even though it's technically a serious crime thriller, it keeps melting into comedy, cynicism, and dark humor, which is awesome.
Jacques Dutronc plays this pianist who spends most of his life in a semi-conscious, hallucinogenic haze—partly because of the chocolate, too.😁
Then you've got Isabelle Huppert, who is incredibly cold throughout (okay, maybe not quite as much as in Haneke's "The Piano Teacher"), and at times she tries to act approachable, but she manages to convey this massive level of pathology and pure malice just through her facial expressions, without any sense of morality (which, let's face it, is basically her trademark in every role).
I’ve seen the ceremony before, but because of Huppert, I'm definitely going to see "Violette Nozière" and "Business Affairs."🙂
The Chopin and Liszt pieces, the funeral march, the way they sync the musical tempo... it all just ramps up the tension. And the cinematography is gorgeous.
Not much else to say...

And honestly, seeing it on film versus a screen makes such a difference. It's nothing like watching some Movieplex broadcast or an HD DVD...

Lisa Davis46 said:😉 🙂
I didn't catch that one, but I'm trying to squeeze in everything I can next week.

I caught the newer "Merci pour le chocolat" on Thursday,
it actually turned out to be a freebie since it was an opening screening.🙂
Anyway, I was just as impressed. Even though it's technically a serious crime thriller, it keeps melting into comedy, cynicism, and dark humor, which is awesome.
Jacques Dutronc plays this pianist who spends most of his life in a semi-conscious, hallucinogenic haze—partly because of the chocolate, too.😁
Then you've got Isabelle Huppert, who is incredibly cold throughout (okay, maybe not quite as much as in Haneke's "The Piano Teacher"), and at times she tries to act approachable, but she manages to convey this massive level of pathology and pure malice just through her facial expressions, without any sense of morality (which, let's face it, is basically her trademark in every role).
I’ve seen the ceremony before, but because of Huppert, I'm definitely going to see "Violette Nozière" and "Business Affairs."🙂
The Chopin and Liszt pieces, the funeral march, the way they sync the musical tempo... it all just ramps up the tension. And the cinematography is gorgeous.
Not much else to say...

And honestly, seeing it on film versus a screen makes such a difference. It's nothing like watching some Movieplex broadcast or an HD DVD...

Exactly, especially when you stumble upon a reel that’s been really well preserved.

Since I just finished a marathon of these movies on my TV—some even for a second time—I'm still weighing whether or not it's worth heading out to catch them in theaters this week.

Yeah, The Biches was my first real brush with Claude Chabrol too... happened maybe three or four years back when there was this huge retrospective of his stuff running over in Beverly Hills.

I managed to catch Zvijer mora umrijeti, Mesar, Nevjeran zen, and Košuta—if I remember right, I think I only missed one from that whole run.

Man, what can I even say? It's the absolute peak of European cinema. These movies are just incredibly "smart," you know? They’ve got this perfectly balanced, sharp sense of humor... and more importantly, it's actually intelligent humor.

The films definitely demand a bit of patience, I won't lie... but they pay off big time for anyone willing to put in the work.