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{{short description|1959 French film}}
{{short description|1959 French film}}
{{other uses|The Keeper (disambiguation)}}
{{other uses|The Keeper (disambiguation)}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{More citations needed|date=October 2023}}
{{all plot|date=April 2019}}
}}
{{Infobox film
{{Infobox film
| name = Head Against the Wall
| name = Head Against the Wall
Line 18: Line 14:
| editing = Suzanne Sandberg
| editing = Suzanne Sandberg
| studio = {{ubl|La Société des films Sirius|ATICA|Elpénor Films}}
| studio = {{ubl|La Société des films Sirius|ATICA|Elpénor Films}}
| distributor = La Société des films Sirius
| distributor = [[La Société des films Sirius]]
| released = {{film date|1959|03|20|France|df=y|ref1=<ref name="Ciné-Ressources">{{cite web|url=http://cinema.encyclopedie.films.bifi.fr/index.php?pk=48625 |title=La Tête contre les murs (1958) Georges Franju |website=[[Ciné-Ressources]] |language=fr |access-date=17 October 2023}}</ref>}}
| released = {{film date|1959|03|20|France|df=y|ref1=<ref name="Ciné-Ressources">{{cite web|url=http://cinema.encyclopedie.films.bifi.fr/index.php?pk=48625 |title=La Tête contre les murs (1958) Georges Franju |website=[[Ciné-Ressources]] |language=fr |access-date=17 October 2023}}</ref>}}
| runtime = 92 minutes
| runtime = 92 minutes
Line 24: Line 20:
| language = French
| language = French
}}
}}
'''''Head Against the Wall''''' ({{lang-fr|La Tête contre les murs}}), also titled '''''The Keepers''''', is a 1959 French [[Drama (film and television)|drama film]] directed by [[Georges Franju]] starring [[Pierre Brasseur]], [[Paul Meurisse]], [[Jean-Pierre Mocky]], [[Anouk Aimée]], and [[Charles Aznavour]]. It was director Franju's debut feature film.<ref name="Ince">{{cite book|last=Ince |first=Kate |title=Georges Franju |publisher=Manchester University Press |year=2005 |isbn=9780719068287 |page=135}}</ref> The story follows an aimless young man who is institutionalized for defying his wealthy father, and in the process airs several questions about how society defines and treats mental illness.
'''''Head Against the Wall''''' ({{langx|fr|La Tête contre les murs}}), also titled '''''The Keepers''''', is a 1959 French [[Drama (film and television)|drama film]] directed by [[Georges Franju]] starring [[Pierre Brasseur]], [[Paul Meurisse]], [[Jean-Pierre Mocky]], [[Anouk Aimée]], and [[Charles Aznavour]]. It was director Franju's debut feature film.<ref name="Ince">{{cite book|last=Ince |first=Kate |title=Georges Franju |publisher=Manchester University Press |year=2005 |isbn=9780719068287 |page=135}}</ref> The story follows an aimless young man who is institutionalized for defying his wealthy father, and in the process airs several questions about how society defines and treats mental illness.


==Plot==
==Plot==
François, motherless son of an influential lawyer, has no qualifications, and no job. To mix with rich and superficial friends, he has borrowed money that he cannot repay. In desperation, he breaks into his father's desk, steals his cash, and wantonly burns his legal documents. Rather than call in the police, with the connivance of a doctor, his father has him committed to an isolated psychiatric hospital in the country.
François, the carefree son of an influential lawyer, has no qualifications and no job. To mix with rich and superficial friends, he has borrowed money that he cannot repay. In search of money, he breaks into his father's desk, steals his cash, and wantonly burns one of his legal documents. Rather than call the police, his father has him committed to an isolated psychiatric hospital in the country. François discovers that many of the inmates are not seriously deranged, but Dr. Varmont, senior doctor of the ward where he is interned, is of the opinion that the mentally ill should be locked away from society.


There, he discovers that many of the inmates are not seriously deranged, but that Dr Varmont, the head of the institution, is a man of rigid views. Two friends he makes are Lenoir, a criminal hiding from gangland revenge, and Heurtevent, a gentle epileptic. To his joy, on the first Sunday, he has a visitor: This is Stéphanie, a girl he met on his last night of freedom, who knows he is not insane and urges him to get a grip of his life. His father visits after he tells Dr Varmont he wants to be reconciled, but the meeting is a failure, and release seems remote. With Heurtevent, he breaks out, but when his friend collapses in an epileptic seizure, the two are re-captured. In despair, Heurtevent hangs himself.
François befriends Lenoir, a criminal hiding from gangland revenge, and Heurtevent, a gentle epileptic. To his joy, Stéphanie, a girl he met on his last night of freedom, pays him a visit. She knows that he is not insane and urges him to get a grip on his life. At the end of the visiting hour, François tries to sneak out with the other people leaving the hospital, but is caught by one of the wardens. Under the influence of [[pentobarbital]], François tells Varmont that he blames his father for his mother's suicide when he was still a boy.


From Heurtevent François learns of the ward of Dr. Emery, whose methods of treatment are more progressive than Varmont's, but Emery does not have the capacities to accept new patients. After telling Dr. Varmont he wants to be reconciled, François is paid a visit by his father, but the meeting is a failure, and release seems remote. Together with Heurtevent, he makes an escape attempt, but his friend collapses in an epileptic seizure while he himself is wounded by a local with his gun. In despair, Heurtevent later hangs himself.
As the hospital cemetery is outside the walls, François plans another escape during the funeral. Lenoir gives him an address in Paris where he can get a bed and a job. Making a successful getaway, he calls at the address to find it is an illegal gambling den. Unsure if that is a world he wants to be in, he goes unannounced to Stéphanie's room, where she welcomes him, and they spend the night together. In the morning, two plainclothes men call, to be told by Stéphanie she knows nothing of his whereabouts. As soon as they have gone, François slips out, and, caught by them on the stairs, is rushed back to the asylum.

François plans another escape during Heurtevent's funeral, as the hospital cemetery is located outside the walls of the institution. Lenoir gives him an address in Paris where he can find a job and a place to sleep. Making a successful getaway, François finds out that the given address is an illegal gambling den. Unsure if this is a milieu he wants to enter, he goes unannounced to Stéphanie's room, who lets him stay at her place and spends the night with him. In the morning, two plainclothes men looking for François appear at Stéphanie's door, but she pretends not to know his whereabouts. François makes preparations to escape, refusing Stéphanie's offer to accompany him. He slips out and, caught in the stairway by the two men who had been waiting for him, is rushed back to the asylum.


==Cast==
==Cast==
Line 55: Line 53:
* [[Jacques Seiler]] as a nurse
* [[Jacques Seiler]] as a nurse
}}
}}

==Reception==
Upon its release, ''Head Against the Wall'' received praise by the critics of ''[[Cahiers du Cinéma]]'', especially by [[Jean-Luc Godard]], who noted that Franju "seeks the madness behind reality, because it is for him the only way to rediscover the true face of reality behind this madness […] Franju demonstrates the necessity of [[Surrealism]] if one considers it as a pilgrimage to the sources."<ref>{{cite book|last=Lowenstein |first=Adam |title=Shocking Representation: Historical Trauma, National Cinema, and the Modern Horror Film |publisher=Columbia University Press |year=2005 |isbn=9780231132466 |page=33}}</ref>


==Soundtrack==
==Soundtrack==
{{Infobox album
| name = Ma Période Française
| type = Soundtrack
| artist = [[Maurice Jarre]]
<!-- Commented out: | cover = Mauricejarresoundtrack.jpg -->
| alt =
| released = February 2005
| recorded =
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = [[Film music]]
| length = 71:11
| label = Play Time
| producer =
| prev_title =
| prev_year =
| next_title =
| next_year =
}}
In February 2005, the French soundtrack record label Play Time released [[Maurice Jarre]]'s film music on Compact Disc, along with other scores Jarre composed for films by Franju.<ref name = "fglmusic">{{cite web
In February 2005, the French soundtrack record label Play Time released [[Maurice Jarre]]'s film music on Compact Disc, along with other scores Jarre composed for films by Franju.<ref name = "fglmusic">{{cite web
| title = Anthologie 80ème Anniversaire
| title = Anthologie 80ème Anniversaire
| publisher = FGL Productions
| publisher = FGL Productions
| year =
| year =
| url = http://www.fglmusic.com/produit?id=467
| url = http://www.fglmusic.com/produit?id=467
| language = French
| language = French
| accessdate = 2008-08-26
| accessdate = 2008-08-26
| archive-date = 2016-03-03
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160303173030/http://www.fglmusic.com/produit?id=467
| url-status = dead
}}</ref>
}}</ref>

===Track listing===
{{Track listing
| total_length = 71:11
| all_music = [[Maurice Jarre]]<ref name = "fglmusic" />
| title1 = Générique / Surprise-partie
| extra1 = ''La Tête contre les Murs''
| length1 = 4:30
| title2 = Thème de Stéphanie
| extra2 = ''La Tête contre les Murs''
| length2 = 4:30
| title3 = Enterrement à l'asile
| extra3 = ''La Tête contre les Murs''
| length3 = 2:44
| title4 = Générique
| extra4 = ''Eyes Without a Face''
| length4 = 2:05
| title5 = Thème romantique
| extra5 = ''Eyes Without a Face''
| length5 = 2:50
| title6 = Filature
| extra6 = ''Eyes Without a Face''
| length6 = 1:23
| title7 = Des phares dans la nuit
| extra7 = ''Eyes Without a Face''
| length7 = 3:32
| title8 = Valse poursuite
| extra8 = ''Eyes Without a Face''
| length8 = 1:45
| title9 = Final
| extra9 = ''Eyes Without a Face''
| length9 = 1:01
| title10 = Générique
| extra10 = ''Thérèse Desqueyroux''
| length10 = 1:54
| title11 = Non-lieu
| extra11 = ''Thérèse Desqueyroux''
| length11 = 1:35
| title12 = Thérèse Desqueyroux
| extra12 = ''Thérèse Desqueyroux''
| length12 = 2:50
| title13 = La femme idéale
| extra13 = ''Les Dragueurs''
| length13 = 2:36
| title14 = La ballade des dragueurs
| extra14 = ''Les Dragueurs''
| length14 = 2:47
| title15 = Surboum chez Ghislaine
| extra15 = ''Les Dragueurs''
| length15 = 2:01
| title16 = L'oiseau de paradis
| extra16 = ''L'Oiseau de Paradis''
| length16 = 2:48
| title17 = L'univers d'Utrillo
| extra17 = ''Un court-métrage de Georges Régnier ''
| length17 = 4:44
| title18 = Générique
| extra18 = ''Le Soleil dans l'œil''
| length18 = 2:28
| title19 = Thème
| extra19 = ''Mort, où est ta Victoire ?''
| length19 = 3:30
| title20 = Valse de Platonov
| extra20 = ''Recours en Grâce''
| length20 = 3:50
| title21 = Les animaux (générique)
| extra21 = ''Les Animaux''
| length21 = 1:20
| title22 = Pavane des flamands roses
| extra22 = ''Les Animaux''
| length22 = 2:43
| title23 = La fête
| extra23 = ''Les Animaux''
| length23 = 2:18
| title24 = Surf des loutres
| extra24 = ''Les Animaux''
| length24 = 1:59
| title25 = Mourir à Madrid
| extra25 = ''Mourir à Madrid''
| length25 = 4:21
| title26 = Générique
| extra26 = ''Week-End à Zuydcoote''
| length26 = 2:28
| title27 = Sergent Maillat
| extra27 = ''Week-End à Zuydcoote''
| length27 = 3:10
| title28 = Final
| extra28 = ''Week-End à Zuydcoote''
| length28 = 1:29
}}


==References==
==References==
Line 193: Line 88:
[[Category:Films based on French novels]]
[[Category:Films based on French novels]]
[[Category:French drama films]]
[[Category:French drama films]]
[[Category:Psychiatry in France]]
[[Category:1950s French films]]
[[Category:1950s French films]]

Latest revision as of 22:44, 13 October 2024

For other uses, see The Keeper (disambiguation).
Head Against the Wall
Directed byGeorges Franju
Screenplay by
Based on
Produced byJean Velter
StarringPierre Brasseur
Paul Meurisse
Jean-Pierre Mocky
Anouk Aimée
Charles Aznavour
Jean Galland
CinematographyEugen Schüfftan
Edited bySuzanne Sandberg
Music byMaurice Jarre
Production
companies
  • La Société des films Sirius
  • ATICA
  • Elpénor Films
Distributed byLa Société des films Sirius
Release date
  • 20 March 1959 (1959-03-20) (France)[1]
Running time
92 minutes
CountryFrance
LanguageFrench

Head Against the Wall (French: La Tête contre les murs), also titled The Keepers, is a 1959 French drama film directed by Georges Franju starring Pierre Brasseur, Paul Meurisse, Jean-Pierre Mocky, Anouk Aimée, and Charles Aznavour. It was director Franju's debut feature film.[2] The story follows an aimless young man who is institutionalized for defying his wealthy father, and in the process airs several questions about how society defines and treats mental illness.

Plot

[edit]

François, the carefree son of an influential lawyer, has no qualifications and no job. To mix with rich and superficial friends, he has borrowed money that he cannot repay. In search of money, he breaks into his father's desk, steals his cash, and wantonly burns one of his legal documents. Rather than call the police, his father has him committed to an isolated psychiatric hospital in the country. François discovers that many of the inmates are not seriously deranged, but Dr. Varmont, senior doctor of the ward where he is interned, is of the opinion that the mentally ill should be locked away from society.

François befriends Lenoir, a criminal hiding from gangland revenge, and Heurtevent, a gentle epileptic. To his joy, Stéphanie, a girl he met on his last night of freedom, pays him a visit. She knows that he is not insane and urges him to get a grip on his life. At the end of the visiting hour, François tries to sneak out with the other people leaving the hospital, but is caught by one of the wardens. Under the influence of pentobarbital, François tells Varmont that he blames his father for his mother's suicide when he was still a boy.

From Heurtevent François learns of the ward of Dr. Emery, whose methods of treatment are more progressive than Varmont's, but Emery does not have the capacities to accept new patients. After telling Dr. Varmont he wants to be reconciled, François is paid a visit by his father, but the meeting is a failure, and release seems remote. Together with Heurtevent, he makes an escape attempt, but his friend collapses in an epileptic seizure while he himself is wounded by a local with his gun. In despair, Heurtevent later hangs himself.

François plans another escape during Heurtevent's funeral, as the hospital cemetery is located outside the walls of the institution. Lenoir gives him an address in Paris where he can find a job and a place to sleep. Making a successful getaway, François finds out that the given address is an illegal gambling den. Unsure if this is a milieu he wants to enter, he goes unannounced to Stéphanie's room, who lets him stay at her place and spends the night with him. In the morning, two plainclothes men looking for François appear at Stéphanie's door, but she pretends not to know his whereabouts. François makes preparations to escape, refusing Stéphanie's offer to accompany him. He slips out and, caught in the stairway by the two men who had been waiting for him, is rushed back to the asylum.

Cast

[edit]

Reception

[edit]

Upon its release, Head Against the Wall received praise by the critics of Cahiers du Cinéma, especially by Jean-Luc Godard, who noted that Franju "seeks the madness behind reality, because it is for him the only way to rediscover the true face of reality behind this madness […] Franju demonstrates the necessity of Surrealism if one considers it as a pilgrimage to the sources."[3]

Soundtrack

[edit]

In February 2005, the French soundtrack record label Play Time released Maurice Jarre's film music on Compact Disc, along with other scores Jarre composed for films by Franju.[4]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "La Tête contre les murs (1958) Georges Franju". Ciné-Ressources (in French). Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  2. ^ Ince, Kate (2005). Georges Franju. Manchester University Press. p. 135. ISBN 9780719068287.
  3. ^ Lowenstein, Adam (2005). Shocking Representation: Historical Trauma, National Cinema, and the Modern Horror Film. Columbia University Press. p. 33. ISBN 9780231132466.
  4. ^ "Anthologie 80ème Anniversaire" (in French). FGL Productions. Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2008-08-26.
[edit]
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