Le Blé en herbe (1954 film)

Le Blé en herbe
Le Blé en herbe
Directed by	Black and white
Production; companies	Franco London Films; William Shelton Films Inc.
Distributed by	Gaumont
Release date	20 January 1954;
Running time	109 minutes
Country	France
Language	French

Le Blé en herbe (English title: The Immature Grain) is a 1954 French

black and white with a monaural

soundtrack.

Plot

The plot involves the relationship between a young man and an older woman,[1] or in one critic's summary, "an older woman ... introduces a teenager ... to the mysteries of love".^[2]

Cast

Edwige Feuillère as Madame Dalleray / la dame en blanc-the lady in white
Nicole Berger as Vinca
Pierre-Michel Beck as Phililippe
Robert Berri as Le brigadier
Simone Duhart as La femme du projectionniste / projectionist's wife
Hélène Tossy as Madame Ferret / la mère de Vinca
Charles Dechamps as Monsieur Ferret / o'oncle
Louis de Funès as projectionist
Renée Devillers as Madame Audebert / la mère de Philippe
Claude Berri as projectionist's son

Marketing

Promotional materials for the film presented it as "the story of two adolescents' love affair and its interruption by an older woman" and called attention to the controversy the film had generated in France.^[3] Feuillère was born in 1907, Beck in 1938.

Awards

The film was awarded the 1954 Grand Prix du Cinéma Français [fr]^[1]

Controversy

In the United States it was subject to a series of attempts to prevent its screening. It received a Class C or "condemned" rating from the Roman Catholic

U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in November 1957 that the film did not meet the standard the Court used for determining obscenity, that is, appealing to prurient interest. The justices viewed the film and upheld Chicago's obscenity statute but objected to its application to this film.^[7]^[9]

Notes

The literal translation of the French title is Ripening Wheat.[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Controversial Film Honored" (PDF). New York Times. May 18, 1954. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
^ "Film Series and Movies Listings". New York Times. July 1, 2010. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
^ Weiler, A.H. (November 28, 1954). "Of Pictures and People" (PDF). New York Times. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
^ "Of Local Origin" (PDF). New York Times. January 28, 1955. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
^ "Censoring of Films in Bay State Voided" (PDF). New York Times. July 7, 1955. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
^ "Boston Passes Film". New York Times. August 2, 1955.
^ ^a ^b Huston, Luther A. (November 13, 1957). "High Court Voids Chicago Film Ban" (PDF). New York Times. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
^ "U.S. Judge Upholds Chicago Ban on Film". New York Times. March 22, 1956.
^ Lewis, Anthony (November 24, 1957). "Justices Viewed Censored Movie" (PDF). New York Times. Retrieved May 3, 2017.

External links

Le Blé en herbe at
IMDb

[controversial-1] "Controversial Film Honored" (PDF). New York Times. May 18, 1954. Retrieved May 3, 2017.

[2] "Film Series and Movies Listings". New York Times. July 1, 2010. Retrieved May 3, 2017.

[3] Weiler, A.H. (November 28, 1954). "Of Pictures and People" (PDF). New York Times. Retrieved May 3, 2017.

[4] "Of Local Origin" (PDF). New York Times. January 28, 1955. Retrieved May 3, 2017.

[5] "Censoring of Films in Bay State Voided" (PDF). New York Times. July 7, 1955. Retrieved May 3, 2017.

[6] "Boston Passes Film". New York Times. August 2, 1955.

[voids-7] Huston, Luther A. (November 13, 1957). "High Court Voids Chicago Film Ban" (PDF). New York Times. Retrieved May 3, 2017.

[8] "U.S. Judge Upholds Chicago Ban on Film". New York Times. March 22, 1956.

[9] Lewis, Anthony (November 24, 1957). "Justices Viewed Censored Movie" (PDF). New York Times. Retrieved May 3, 2017.

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