Henri Verneuil
| Henri Verneuil | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born |
Ashot Malakian 15 October 1920 Rodosto, Ottoman Turkey |
| Died |
11 January 2002 (aged 81) Bagnolet, Seine-Saint-Denis |
| Occupation | Director |
| Years active | 1940s – 2000s |
| Spouse(s) | Françoise Bonnot, Veronique |
| Children | Patric, Sophie, Sevan, Gayane |
| Awards |
Cannes Film Festival, Golden Palm César Awards 1996 Golden Globe Award 1961 Mélodie en sous-sol (1961) |
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 Film Festival, Edgar Allan Poe Awards, French Legion of Honor, Golden Globe Award, French National Academy of Cinema and Honorary Cesar awards.
Life and career
Henri Verneuil was born Ashot Malakian (Armenian: Աշոտ Մալաքեան) to Armenian parents in Rodosto, East Thrace, Turkey. When Ashot was a little child his family fled to Marseille in France,[1] to escape persecution after the Armenian Genocide.[2] He later recounted his childhood experience in the novel Mayrig, which he dedicated to his mother and made into a 1991 film with the same name, which was followed by a sequel, 588 Rue Paradis, the following year.[3] Henri Verneuil entered the Ecole Nationale d'Arts et Metiers in Aix-en-Provence in 1942. After graduation, he worked as a journalist, then became editor of Horizon Armenian magazine.
In 1947 Henri Verneuil managed to convince the established European film actor Fernandel to appear in his first film.[4] Later he also directed other movie stars including Jean Gabin, Yves Montand, Alain Delon, Lino Ventura (all together acting for him in "Le clan des siciliens" in 1969[5]), Jean-Paul Belmondo ("Le Corps de mon ennemi" in 1976[6] and other films), Omar Sharif, Claudia Cardinale (Mayrig)[7] and Michèle Morgan. Henri Verneuil has filmed almost all the great figures of French cinema, with the exception of Bourvil, as even Louis de Funes has a small role in one of his films.
After the American experience (he was called the "most American of French directors"), in 1969 Verneuil "found" France. He was awarded a César[8] in 1996 and he was elected a member of the Academy of Fine Arts in 2000. He died at Bagnolet in 2002.
The opening of the seventh annual Golden Apricot International Film Festival in Yerevan paid tribute to Henri Verneuil. His son, television director Patrick Malakian, who reclaimed the name of his historical ancestors, received the posthumous award, the Parajanov’s Thaler, for his father’s contribution to cinema.
Filmography
- Pipe chien (1950)
- On demande un bandit (1950)
- Maldonne (1950)
- La Légende de Terre-Blanche (1950)
- L'Art d'être courtier (1950)
- La Table-aux-Crevés (1995) (+ playwright)
- Le Fruit défendu (1952) (+ playwright)
- Brelan d'As (1952)
- Le Boulanger de Valorgue (1953)
- Carnaval (Carnival) (1953)
- L'Ennemi Public n°1 (Public Enemy No.1) (1953)
- Le Mouton à cinq pattes (The Five Legs Sheep) (1954) (director + screenwriter)
- Les Amants du Tage (1955)
- Des gens sans importance (1955) (+ playwright)
- Paris, Palace Hôtel (1956) (+ playwright)
- Une manche et la belle (1957) (+ playwright)
- Sois belle et tais-toi (1958)
- Maxime (1958) (+ playwright)
- Le Grand chef (1959)
- La Vache et le Prisonnier (1959) (+ playwright) with Fernandel
- L'Affaire d'une nuit (1960)
- La Française et l'amour (1960)
- Le Président (The President) (1961) (+ playwright) with Jean Gabin
- Les Lions sont lâchés (1961)
- Un singe en hiver (1962) with Jean Gabin and Jean-Paul Belmondo
- Mélodie en sous-sol (1963) (Any Number Can Win) (1964 Edgar Award, Best Foreign Film) with Alain Delon and Jean Gabin
- Cent mille dollars au soleil (1964) (+ playwright) with Jean-Paul Belmondo and Lino Ventura
- Week-end à Zuydcoote (1964) with Jean-Paul Belmondo
- La Vingt-cinquième heure (The 25th Hour) (1967) (+ playwright) with Anthony Quinn
- La Bataille de San Sebastian (A wall for San Sebastian) (1968) with Anthony Quinn and Charles Bronson
- Le Clan des Siciliens (The Sicilian Clan) (1969) (+ playwright), starring Delon, Gabin and Ventura
- Le Casse (1971) (+ playwright) with Jean-Paul Belmondo and Omar Sharif
- Le Serpent (Night Flight from Moscow) (1973) (+ playwright) with Henry Fonda and Yul Brynner
- Peur sur la ville (1975) (+ playwright) with Jean-Paul Belmondo
- Le Corps de mon ennemi (1976) (+ playwright) with Jean-Paul Belmondo
- I comme Icare (I as in Icarus) (1979) (+ playwright) with Yves Montand
- Mille milliards de dollars (1982) (+ playwright)
- Les Morfalous (1984) (+ playwright) with Jean-Paul Belmondo
- Mayrig (Mother) (1992) (+ playwright)
- 588 Rue Paradis (1993) (+ playwright)
References
- ↑ "To avoid persecution, his Armenian family fled to France when he was an infant in 1924.". Retrieved 2011-04-25.
- ↑ "Henri Verneuil. French mainstream film director given his chance by Fernandel". Retrieved 2013-10-07.
- ↑ "Towards the end of his career Verneuil made two more movies - labors of love - which reflect his own childhood and upbringing, MAYRIG (1991) and 588 RUE PARADIS (1992)". Retrieved 2011-04-25.
- ↑ "He made his first film, a documentary on Marseilles, in 1947. He persuaded Fernandel to appear in it and read the commentary.". The Independent (London). 2002-01-15. Retrieved 2011-04-25.
- ↑ "Le Clan Des Siciliens - 1969 - Henri Verneuil". Retrieved 2011-04-25.
- ↑ "Le corps de mon ennemi". Retrieved 2011-04-25.
- ↑ "Henri Verneuil very gentle and warm person, Claudia Cardinale says". Retrieved 2011-04-25.
- ↑ "In 1996, Verneuil was awarded an honorary Cesar, France's equivalent of the Oscar, for lifetime achievement in film.". Los Angeles Times. 2002-01-12. Retrieved 2011-04-25.