Hôtel du Nord [Blu-ray] [Criterion Collection]

Director: Marcel Carné Marcel Carné

Overview

Hotel du Nord was the second in Marcel Carne's trio of "fatalistic romantic melodramas," bracketed on either side by Quai des Brumes and Le Jour se Leve. Star-crossed lovers Annabella and Jean-Pierre Aumont draw up a suicide pact, making their fatal rendezvous at the Hotel du Nord. Aumont shoots Annabella, but loses his nerve when time comes to take his own life. Seedy criminal Louis Jouvet and his mistress Arletty help Aumont to escape the authorities-but he can't very well run away from himself. Happily, Annabella recovers from her wounds and forgives the repentant Aumont. Fate, however, has other things in store for the tormented hero, as elucidated by the grimly ironic ending.

Product Details

Release Date:	08/23/2022
UPC:	0715515275217
Original Release:	1938
Source:	Criterion Collection
Language:	English
Time:	1:36:00
Sales rank:	13,610

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Louis Jouvet	Monsieur Edmond
Arletty	Raymonde
Jean-Pierre Aumont	Pierre
André Brunot	Emile
Bernard Blier	Prosper
Paulette Dubost	Ginette
François Périer	Adrien
Andrex	Kenel
Henri Bosc	Nazarède
Marcel André	le chirurgien
Armand Lurville	le commissaire
Jane Marken	Louise Lecouvreur
Charles Bouillaud	un inspecteur
Dora Doll	une femme au restaurant
Marcel Pérès	un client du restaurant
Raymone	Jeanne
Annabella	Renee
François Perier	Adrien
René Bergeron	Maltaverne
Maurice Jaubert	Composer

Technical Credits

Jean Aurenche

Henri Jeanson

Marcel Carné	Director
Jean Aurenche	Screenwriter
Henri Jeanson	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

If Hotel du Nord falls short of the brilliance of the other two entries in Marcel Carné's romantic trilogy (let alone the magnificence of his later film Les Enfants du Paradis), it is still a worthy and intriguing film on its own terms. The absence of writer Jacques Prévert is certainly keenly felt, but there's still flair and spice to the dialogue, the structure of the screenplay is solid, and metaphor and symbolism are given their due. Carné also imbues the film with more than enough artificial atmosphere to further secure its place in the canon of poetic realist works, and the stunning sets by Alexandre Trauner play an important part in giving the film its unique, grim, and exquisitely faded texture. Carné uses the camera throughout to create haunting, often disturbing images, adding weight to what is at base a simple, melodramatic story. His camera especially loves Annabella, lingering over her lips and eyes, gazing longingly at her smooth, glowing skin. The actress turns in a lovely performance, making some of the film's most awkward dialogue seem natural. Arletty, given stronger material, makes an even stronger impression, making the "whore with a heart of gold" into something fresh and new, and investing the part with an energy and life that is palpable and thrilling. Nord falls short of being a classic, but it is well worth seeing, especially by those who have devoured Carné's better known works.

All Movie Guide - Craig Butler