''Village Feud'' or ''The Hunting Ground'' (French: ''La Table-aux-Crevés'') is a 1951 French

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by

Henri Verneuil Henri Verneuil (; born Ashot Malakian; 15 October 1920 – 11 January 2002) was a French-Armenian playwright and filmmaker, who made a successful career in France. He was nominated for Oscar and Palme d'Or awards, and won Locarno International F ...

and starring

Fernandel Fernand Joseph Désiré Contandin (8 May 1903 – 26 February 1971), better known as Fernandel, was a French comic actor. Born in Marseille, France, to Désirée Bedouin and Denis Contandin, originating in Perosa Argentina, a town located in th ...

Maria Mauban Maria Mauban (10 May 1924 – 26 August 2014) was a French actress. She appeared in around fifty films and television series during her career. in 1950 she starred in the British Egyptian-set crime film '' Cairo Road''. The same year she appeared ...

and

Andrex Andrex is a British brand of toilet roll. It is owned by the United States, American company Kimberly-Clark. The "Andrex Puppy", a Labrador Retriever puppy that appears on the company's television advertisements, is synonymous with the brand. T ...

. It is based on the 1929 novel '' The Hollow Field'' by

Marcel Aymé Marcel Aymé (; 29 March 1902 – 14 October 1967) was a French novelist and playwright, who also wrote screenplays and works for children. Biography Marcel André Aymé was born in Joigny, in the Burgundy region of France, the youngest ...

.Goble p.19 It was filmed at the Marseille Studios and on location in

Cabriès Cabriès (; ) is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in southern France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include ...

in Provence. 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 ...

René Moulaert René Moulaert (1901–1965) was a Belgian art director who worked on designing stage (theatre), stage and film sets.Thys p.316 Selected filmography * ''The Marriage of Mademoiselle Beulemans (1932 film), The Marriage of Mademoiselle Beulemans'' ...

. It was Verneuil's first feature film after directing a number of

shorts Shorts are a garment worn over the pelvic area, circling the waist and splitting to cover the upper part of the legs, sometimes extending down to the knees but not covering the entire length of the leg. They are called "shorts" because they ar ...

Synopsis

When the wife of farmer and village politician Urbain Coindet commits suicide, his political rivals all allege that she was really murdered. Meanwhile, Urbain courts the daughter of a local tobacco

smuggler Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. More broadly, soc ...

who hates him.

Cast

as Urbain Coindet *

as Jeanne Gari *

as Frédéric Gari * Antonin Berval as Le père Gari *

René Génin René Génin (25 January 1890 – 24 October 1967) was a French stage and film actor. He appeared in more than 130 films between 1931 and 1965. Selected filmography * ''Vertigo'' (1935) * '' The Mutiny of the Elsinore'' (1936) * '' The Bri ...

as Le curé *

Fernand Sardou Fernand Sardou (18 September 1910 – 31 January 1976La Gloire de Pagnol
p. 235.) was a French singer an ...

as Forgeral * Alexandre Arnaudy as Miloin *

Marcel Charvey Marcel may refer to: People * Marcel (given name), people with the given name Marcel * Marcel (footballer, born August 1981), Marcel Silva Andrade, Brazilian midfielder * Marcel (footballer, born November 1981), Marcel Augusto Ortolan, Brazilian ...

as Rambarde *

Jenny Hélia Jenny may refer to: * Jenny (given name), a popular feminine name and list of real and fictional people * Jenny (surname), a family name Animals * Jenny (donkey), a female donkey * Jenny (elephant), a female elephant in the German Army in World ...

as La Cornette * Jeanne Mars as Une commère * Mado Stelli as Louise * Marthe Marty as Heloise Miloin *

Edmond Ardisson Edmond Ardisson (23 October 1904, in Marseille – 30 November 1983, in Jouarre) was a French people, French actor. He appeared in more than ninety films between 1938 and 1983. Filmography External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ardisson, Edmond ...

as Cugue * Max Mouron as Le Corne * Cambis as Un client du bistrot * Manuel Gary as Felicien Berger *

Henri Vilbert Henri Vilbert (; 6 April 1904 – 20 April 1997) was a French actor. He appeared in more than a hundred films from 1921 to 1982. Filmography References External links * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vilbert, Henri 1904 births 1997 deaths 20t ...

as Victor * Édouard Delmont as Capucet

References

Bibliography

* Goble, Alan. ''The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film''. Walter de Gruyter, 1999. * Oscherwitz, Dayna & Higgins, MaryEllen. ''The A to Z of French Cinema''. Scarecrow Press, 2009. * Rège, Philippe. ''Encyclopedia of French Film Directors, Volume 1''. Scarecrow Press, 2009.

External links

* 1951 films French comedy films 1951 comedy films 1950s French-language films Films directed by Henri Verneuil French black-and-white films 1950s French films Films based on French novels Films scored by Louiguy Films based on works by Marcel Aymé {{1950s-France-comedy-film-stub