L'Abbé Constantin (1933)
Directed by Jean-Paul Paulin

Film Review

Of the twenty or so films directed by Jean-Paul Paulin (the son of the famous sculptor Paul Paulin), very few have earned the attention of his best known work, the patriotic drama Trois de St Cyr (1939).  In one of his earliest films, L'Abbé Constantin, Paulin shows a remarkable flair for comedy, and having watched it you can't help wondering why he didn't go on to become the Ernst Lubitsch of 1930s French cinema.  The film is based on a popular stage play of the same title by Hector Crémieux, which had previously been adapted by Julien Duvivier in 1925, its main asset being an impressive cast which includes two of the legends of French cinema, Françoise Rosay and Claude Dauphin.

Rosay is in her element as a tyrannical, slightly unhinged countess determined to protect France's heritage from the invading barbarians, here represented by two sweet American ingénues - one played by the Australian Betty Stockfeld, the other by a pretty French gal, Josseline Gaël.  The title role went to Léon Belières, a superb character actor of the period who is probably best known today for playing Régis Castel-Blénac in Marcel Pagnol's 1936 version of Topaze.  Dauphin is amusing as Rosay's put-upon son ("Are you my son or not?" asks the mother.  "You should know better than I do," responds the son tartly), but he is soon out-classed by Jean Martinelli at the start of his career (twenty years on, he would shine in his most famous role in Hitchcock's To Catch a Thief).  Hardly any French comedy of this era would be complete without Pauline Carton, so here she is, as usual, in the part of the household domestic.  Carton seems to have spent her entire career in an apron.

Screen adaptations of popular plays were commonplace in the early 1930s, but few managed to avoid falling into the trap of being little more than filmed stage plays.  With much of the film shot on location - and beautifully so by the legendary cinematographer Léonce-Henri Burel - L'Abbé Constantin has a vitality and picturesque quality that belies its theatrical origins.  In parts, it veers towards American screwball, and Charles Spaak's screenplay certainly packs a hefty satirical punch, mocking primarily out-dated French attitudes towards Americans.  Unjustly neglected, this sparkling little comedy gem is one of the liveliest and funniest French films of the 1930s, and this it owes almost entirely to an enjoyable star turn from Françoise Rosay.

Film Synopsis

The Countess de Laverdens has set her noble heart on buying the château de Longueval.  Imagine then her horror when she learns that she has been outbid at the auction and the property now belongs to two wealthy American sisters!  The countess isn't beaten yet, however.  She agrees to write off her son Paul's debts if he manages to get himself engaged to one of the sisters.  Unfortunately, he has a rival in Jean, the godson of the local Catholic priest, Abbé Constantin...