''Graduate First'' (french: Passe ton bac d'abord) is a 1978 French drama film directed by

Maurice Pialat Maurice Pialat (; 31 August 1925 – 11 January 2003) was a French film director, screenwriter and actor known for the rigorous and unsentimental style of his films. His work is often described as " realist",

and starring

Sabine Haudepin Sabine Haudepin (born 19 October 1955) is a French actress. She has appeared in more than 50 films since 1962. She was born in Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis Montreuil (), sometimes unofficially referred to as Montreuil-sous-Bois (), is a commu ...

. The film is set in the north of France, in

Lens A lens is a transmissive optical device which focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements'' ...

, in a region profoundly affected by unemployment – the students, from modest backgrounds, try to forget their fears of what tomorrow will bring.

Plot

The film is an "unsparing portrait of teenage life in the French suburbs

hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mech ...

sees a group of schoolfriends adrift at the end of the 1970s. There's drama, violence, and pot-induced laughs, group holidays, indiscriminate sex, advances from teachers twenty-five years their seniors, attempted moves to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

– and few prospects of passing the

Baccalauréat The ''baccalauréat'' (; ), often known in France colloquially as the ''bac'', is a French national academic qualification that students can obtain at the completion of their secondary education (at the end of the ''lycée'') by meeting certain ...

, the final set of exams French students take before embarking into the world... to do what? Marking the last work of Pialat's turbulent cycle of 1970s films, this is the sequel to the filmmaker's feature debut ''

L'enfance nue ''Naked Childhood'' (french: L'enfance nue) is a 1968 French film. It was the feature-length debut of director Maurice Pialat, and was written by Pialat and Arlette Langmann. François Truffaut was one of the film's producers. Plot The ten-year- ...

'' (1969) – picked up again from a vantage point ten years on from the lives of the earlier film's protagonists."''Moviemail Monthly Film Catalogue September 2009

Cast

as Élisabeth * as Philippe *

Annick Alane Annick Alane (5 September 1925 – 28 October 2019) was a French film, television, and theatre actress from Carnac. Filmography *1957: '' Les Truands'' (directed by Carlo Rim) *1965: ''Les Pieds dans le plâtre'' (directed by Jacques Fabbri ...

as La mère (as Annik Alane) * Michel Caron as Le père *

Christian Bouillette Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρισ ...

as Le vieux dragueur * Bernard Tronczyk as Bernard * Patrick Lepcynski as Patrick * Valérie Chassigneux as Valérie *

Jean-François Adam Jean-François Adam ( 14 October 1980) was a French actor and director. Career Adam was an assistant to French filmmakers François Truffaut and Jean-Pierre Melville. He is known for having played the small role of Colette's lover in the Anto ...

as Le professeur de philosophie * Agnès Makowiak as Agnès * Charline Pourré as Charline *

Patrick Playez Patrick may refer to: *Patrick (given name), list of people and fictional characters with this name * Patrick (surname), list of people with this name People * Saint Patrick (c. 385–c. 461), Christian saint * Gilla Pátraic (died 1084), Patrick ...

as Rocky, le marié * Muriel Lacroix as Muriel * Frédérique Cerbonnet as Frédérique * Fabienne Neuville as La soeur d'Élizabeth * Aline Fayard as La femme du patron

References

External links

* 1978 films 1978 drama films 1970s teen drama films Films set in France French teen drama films 1970s French-language films Films directed by Maurice Pialat 1970s French films {{1970s-France-film-stub