The Widow Couderc
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''The Widow Couderc'' () is a 1971 French drama film based on the 1942 novel of the same name by
Georges Simenon Georges Joseph Christian Simenon (; 12/13 February 1903 – 4 September 1989) was a Belgian writer who created the fictional detective Jules Maigret. One of the most prolific and successful authors of the 20th century, he published around 400 ...
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Plot

In 1934, in a little village on a canal in Burgundy ( Cheuge), a laconic young stranger called Jean is walking along the road when an older woman in black gets off a bus with a heavy load. He helps her carry it to her farm, where she offers him work and a room. He accepts, and soon she is in his bed. She is the widow Couderc, running the farm single-handed with her infirm father-in-law. Across the canal live her sister-in-law and ineffectual husband, who are trying to evict the widow and gain the property. They have a 16-year-old daughter, Félicie, who has already managed to have a baby, father uncertain. Jean enjoys helping on the farm, but will reveal little of his past. His father was rich, he says, and he wanted to become a doctor but killed a man, ending up in jail from which he has escaped. The widow accepts his story, but her trust is strained when he can't resist sleeping with the alluring Félicie as well. The situation is taken out of her hands when her sister-in-law denounces Jean to the police, who surround the farm at dawn. When Jean fires on them, both he and the widow are killed in the ensuing fusillade.


Cast

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Simone Signoret Simone Signoret (; born Simone Henriette Charlotte Kaminker; 25 March 1921 – 30 September 1985) was a French actress. She received various accolades, including an Academy Award, three BAFTA Awards, a César Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and ...
- Tati Couderc *
Alain Delon Alain Fabien Maurice Marcel Delon (; 8 November 1935 – 18 August 2024) was a French actor, film producer, screenwriter, singer, and businessman. Acknowledged as a cultural and cinematic leading man of the 20th century, Delon emerged as one of ...
- Jean Lavigne * Ottavia Piccolo - Félicie * Jean Tissier - Henri Couderc * Monique Chaumette - Françoise * Boby Lapointe - Désiré * Pierre Collet - commissaire Mallet * François Valorbe - colonel Luc de Mortemont * Jean-Pierre Castaldi


Reception

The film opened at number one at the box office in Paris with a first week gross of $163,000.


References


External links

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Review of film
at
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
1971 drama films French drama films Films based on Belgian novels Films based on works by Georges Simenon Films directed by Pierre Granier-Deferre Films scored by Philippe Sarde 1970s French films 1970s French-language films French-language drama films {{1970s-drama-film-stub