''The Last Turning'' (French: ''Le Dernier tournant'') is a 1939 French

film noir Film noir (; ) is a style of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Crime film, crime dramas that emphasizes cynicism (contemporary), cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of Ameri ...

directed by

Pierre Chenal Pierre Chenal (; 5 December 1904 – 23 December 1990) was a French director and screenwriter who flourished in the 1930s. He was married to Czech-born French film actress Florence Marly from 1937 to 1955. Work Chenal was best known for film noi ...

and starring

Fernand Gravey Fernand Gravey (25 December 1905 in Ixelles (Belgium) – 2 November 1970 in Paris, France),Death certificate # 8/445/1970 also known as Fernand Gravet in the United States, was a Belgian-born French actor. Early life Gravey was the son o ...

Corinne Luchaire Corinne Luchaire (11 February 1921 – 22 January 1950) was a French film actress who was a star of French cinema on the eve of World War II. Her association with the German occupation led her to be sentenced to " national indignity" after the w ...

and

Michel Simon Michel Simon (; 9 April 1895 – 30 May 1975) was a Swiss actor of German origin active primarily in France. Joinville Studios The Joinville Studios were a film studio in Paris which operated between 1910 and 1987. They were one of the leading French studios, with major companies such as Pathé and Gaumont Film Company, Gaumont making films there. A second studio was a ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. The film's sets were designed by the

art director Art director is a title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, live-action and animated film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supe ...

Georges Wakhévitch Georges Wakhévitch (; Georgy Leonidovich Vakhevich; August 18, 1907 in Odessa, Russian Empire – February 11, 1984 in Paris) was a Russian-born French art director. The son of a naval engineer, he immigrated to France in 1921. He grew up in Par ...

. The screenplay was written by

Charles Spaak Charles Spaak (25 May 1903 – 4 March 1975) was a Belgian screenwriter who was noted particularly for his work in the French cinema during the 1930s. He was the son of the dramatist and poet Paul Spaak, the brother of the politician Paul-Henri ...

and

Henri Torrès Henri is the French form of the masculine given name Henry, also in Estonian, Finnish, German and Luxembourgish. Bearers of the given name include: People French nobles * Henri I de Montmorency (1534–1614), Marshal and Constable of France * H ...

, based on the 1934 novel '' The Postman Always Rings Twice'' by James M. Cain. It was the first screen adaptation of the novel followed by the 1943 film ''

Ossessione (, "Obsession") is a 1943 Italian crime drama film directed and co-written by Luchino Visconti, in his directorial debut. It is an unauthorized and uncredited adaptation of the 1934 novel '' The Postman Always Rings Twice'' by American author ...

'' and '' The Postman Always Rings Twice'' in 1946.

Cast

as Frank *

Michel Simon Michel Simon (; 9 April 1895 – 30 May 1975) was a Swiss actor of German origin active primarily in France. Corinne Luchaire Corinne Luchaire (11 February 1921 – 22 January 1950) was a French film actress who was a star of French cinema on the eve of World War II. Her association with the German occupation led her to be sentenced to " national indignity" after the w ...

as Cora Marino *

Marcel Vallée Marcel Vallée (15 January 1880, in Paris – 31 October 1957, in Fontaine-le-Port) was a French actor, primarily of the theater. He began working in films with Max Linder in 1906. He appeared in some American films. Selected filmography * '' ...

as Le juge *

Robert Le Vigan Robert Le Vigan (born Robert Coquillaud, 7 January 1900 – 12 October 1972) was a French actor. He appeared in more than 60 films between 1931 and 1943 almost exclusively in small or supporting roles. He was, according to film academic Gin ...

as Le cousin maître-chanteur * Etienne Decroux as Le patron du bistrot *

Florence Marly Florence Marly (2 June 1919 – 9 November 1978) was a Czech-born French film actress. During World War II, Marly moved to neutral Argentina with her Jewish husband, film director Pierre Chenal, where she appeared in several films. She also acte ...

as Madge, la dompteuse *

Jean-François Martial Jean-François Martial (12 September 1891 – 18 October 1977) was a Belgian actor who appeared in mostly French films beginning in the silent film era of the early 1910s until his retirement in the early 1960s. Born Martial Joseph Ghislain Fo ...

as L'architecte *

Pierre Labry Pierre Labry (1885–1948) was a French stage actor, stage and film actor.Capua p.122 He was active in the French film industry between 1920 and 1948, appearing in more than a hundred films. Selected filmography * ''La croisade'' (1920) * ''Gigo ...

as Un camionneur *

Georges Péclet Prosper Désiré "Georges" Péclet (27 July 1897 – 11 January 1974) was a French actor, director, and screenwriter. Career Between 1919 and 1957, Péclet played in ninety-five films (including several short films). He was an assistant directo ...

as L'assureur * Auguste Bovério as Le prêtre *

Pierre Sergeol Pierre Sergeol (November 22, 1902 – June 18, 1975) was a French film actor.https://www.unifrance.org/annuaires/personne/127325/pierre-sergeol He appeared in numerous films as a character actor in supporting roles. He often played professional fi ...

as L'avocat *

René Bergeron René Bergeron (1890–1971) was a French stage and film actor.Crisp p.57 A character actor he played numerous supporting roles in films, particularly during the 1930s and early 1940s. Selected filmography * '' Captain Fracasse'' (1929) * '' The ...

as Le commissaire *

Marcel Duhamel Marcel Duhamel (16 July 1900 – 6 March 1977) was a French actor and screenwriter, founder of the Série noire publishing imprint. He played The Foreman in Jean Renoir's 1936 ''The Crime of Monsieur Lange''. In 1953 he was credited as screenp ...

as Le monsieur pressé *

Charles Blavette Charles Blavette (24 June 1902 – 21 November 1967) was a French film actor. He appeared in 50 films between 1933 and 1966. Selected filmography * ''Jofroi'' (1934) – Antoine * '' Angèle'' (1934) – Tonin * ''Toni'' (1935) – Antonio ...

as Un camionneur * Serge Nadaud as Le motard *

Georges Douking Georges Douking (born Georges Ladoubée; 6 August 1902 – 20 October 1987) was a French stage, film, and television actor. He also directed stage plays such as the premier presentation of Jean Giraudoux's ''Sodom and Gomorrah'' at the Théâtr ...

as Un joueur *

Fred Pasquali Alfred-Adolphe Pasquali (31 October 1898 – 12 June 1991) was a French actor and theatre director. Theatre Comedian * 1921 : ''La Dauphine'' by François Porché, Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier * 1925 : ''La Robe d'un soir'' by Rosemonde Gé ...

as Un joueur *

Georges Paulais Georges Paulais (16 September 1884 – 12 December 1967) was a French film actor. He appeared in more than 140 films between 1910 and 1956. He was born in Guimps, Charente, France and died in Chabanais, Charente, France. Selected filmogra ...

as Le greffier *

Yvonne Yma Yvonne Yma (1887–1959) was a French stage and film actress.Phillips p.212 Selected filmography * '' Take Care of Amelie'' (1932) * ''A Father Without Knowing It'' (1932) * '' Student's Hotel'' (1932) * ''Make-Up'' (1932) * ''The Barber of Sevil ...

as La femme

References

Bibliography

* Hodgson, Michael. ''Patricia Roc''. Author House, 2013. *Walker-Morrison, Deborah. ''Classic French Noir: Gender and the Cinema of Fatal Desire''. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2020.

External links

*
''The Last Turning''
at the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

''Le Dernier tournant''
at filmsdefrance.com 1939 films Films about adultery in France Films based on The Postman Always Rings Twice Films directed by Pierre Chenal Films based on crime novels French black-and-white films French drama films 1939 drama films 1939 crime films French crime films 1930s French films 1930s French-language films Films scored by Jean Wiener Films shot at Joinville Studios Film noir Films with screenplays by Charles Spaak {{1930s-France-film-stub