{"id":34064,"date":"2014-08-20T13:19:39","date_gmt":"2014-08-20T20:19:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=34064"},"modified":"2020-12-12T14:53:54","modified_gmt":"2020-12-12T21:53:54","slug":"boudu-saved-from-drowning-1932","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=34064","title":{"rendered":"Boudu Saved From Drowning (1932)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;Even though he disgusts me, I did save his life.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Poster-215x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"215\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-34065\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Poster-215x300.jpg 215w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Poster-92x128.jpg 92w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Poster.jpg 580w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 215px) 100vw, 215px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA well-meaning bookseller (Charles Granval) rescues an indigent man named Boudu (Michel Simon) from drowning and brings him to his house, where his wife (Marcelle Hainia) and mistress-housekeeper (Severine Lerczinska) are both initially perturbed by Boudu&#8217;s uncouth presence, but slowly seduced by his animal-like &#8220;charms&#8221;.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Bourgeois Society<\/li>\n<li>Class Relations<\/li>\n<li>Do-Gooders<\/li>\n<li>French Films<\/li>\n<li>Homeless<\/li>\n<li>Jean Renoir Films<\/li>\n<li>Play Adaptations<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary\u2019s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nPeary writes that this &#8220;comic tribute to Paris&#8217;s bums&#8221; &#8212; directed by Jean Renoir, and based on a play by Rene Fauchois &#8212; is &#8220;not great Renoir&#8221; but remains a &#8220;perceptive social comedy&#8221; which isn&#8217;t &#8220;nearly as bad as critics contended in 1967 when it received its first American release&#8221;. He points out that &#8220;Simon&#8217;s movements remind some of Charles Laughton&#8221;, and notes how interesting it is that Boudu &#8220;is such an unsentimentalized slob &#8212; rather than the lovable tramp of the Chaplin tradition&#8221;. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Simon.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Simon.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1227\" height=\"1031\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-57395\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Simon.png 1227w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Simon-300x252.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Simon-1024x860.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Simon-128x108.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Simon-768x645.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Simon-321x270.png 321w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1227px) 100vw, 1227px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>However, while modern critics delight in the way Boudu subverts expectations by anarchically refusing to express appreciation for what he&#8217;s given, he ultimately comes across as simply an annoying cipher. We learn nothing about his background, and &#8212; because he&#8217;s such a lout &#8212; we care little about him or his future. In fact, this is a rare instance where I prefer the remake &#8212; Paul Mazurky&#8217;s <em><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=33858\">Down and Out in Beverly Hills<\/em> (1986)<\/a>, starring Nick Nolte &#8212; to the original, given that both Nolte&#8217;s character (as scripted) and performance are more nuanced. While the cinematography in <em>Boudu&#8230;<\/em> is beautiful (see stills below), this one is only must-see viewing for Renoir fans.  <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Lovely cinematography and framing<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"860\" height=\"720\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-34066\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography1.png 860w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography1-128x107.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography1-300x251.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"860\" height=\"720\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-34067\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography2.png 860w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography2-128x107.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography2-300x251.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography3.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"860\" height=\"720\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-34068\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography3.png 860w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography3-128x107.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Boudu-Cinematography3-300x251.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nNo, though film fanatics interested in Renoir&#8217;s work will likely be curious to check it out. <\/p>\n<p> (<span style=\"color:red;font-weight:bold;\">Listed in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-static\/1001Movies.htm\"><em>1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die<\/em><\/a><\/span>) <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0022718\/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s1699boud.html\">DVD Savant Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.qnetwork.com\/index.php?page=review&#038;id=1504\">Q Network Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.timeout.com\/london\/film\/boudu-saved-from-drowning\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Even though he disgusts me, I did save his life.&#8221; Synopsis: A well-meaning bookseller (Charles Granval) rescues an indigent man named Boudu (Michel Simon) from drowning and brings him to his house, where his wife (Marcelle Hainia) and mistress-housekeeper (Severine Lerczinska) are both initially perturbed by Boudu&#8217;s uncouth presence, but slowly seduced by his animal-like &#8220;charms&#8221;. Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Bourgeois Society Class Relations Do-Gooders French Films Homeless Jean Renoir Films Play Adaptations Response to Peary\u2019s Review: Peary writes&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=34064\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34064","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34064","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=34064"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34064\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57396,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34064\/revisions\/57396"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=34064"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=34064"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=34064"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}