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Retrospective: Jean Becker
Jean Becker is the son of filmmaker Jacques Becker and the
brother of cinematographer Etienne Becker. He began his career
as an intern in his father’s films. Besides assisting his father, he also
assisted director Julien Duvivier and Henri Verneuil. In 1961 he
made his first film Un nommé La Rocca (A Man Named Rocca)
followed by three films including Tender voyou (Tender Scoundrel)
(1966), that were critically and commercially successful.
After completing the episodes of the hit television series Les saintes
cherries (1965-1970), Becker took a break from filmmaking for
nearly twenty years. He returned in 1983 with L'été meurtrier (One
Deadly Summer). The film was a huge success and was
nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Festival de Cannes and also
got four Cesars (1984).
Becker tried his hand at advertising films and became one of the
leading directors in this field. In 1986 he won the César for Best Film
Advertising for Le Clemenceau. Success and critical acclaim
followed in his following films like Élisa (Elisa) (1995), Les Enfants du
Marais (Children of the Marshlands) (1999), Effroyables jardins
(Strange Gardens) (2003), Dialogue avec mon jardinier
(Conversations with My Gardener) (2007), Deux jours à tuer (Love
Me No More) (2008) and more recently la tête en friche (My
Afternoons with Marguerite) (2010).
He has worked with a diverse set of actors like Vanessa Paradis,
Gerard Depardieu, Jacques Villeret, Suzanne Flon, André
Dussollier, Josiane Balasko, Thierry Lhermitte, Benoit Magimel,
Daniel Auteuil, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Albert, Marie-Josee Croze,
Pierre Vaneck, Gisele Casadesus, Isabelle Adjani and many
others.
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One Deadly Summer
1983, 130 minutes
Director: Jean Becker