Before the Deluge
Released: February 26, 1954Runtime: 138 minLanguage: FR
The title of this French "reality" drama, which translates to Before the Deluge, is a play on Louis XVI's famous prognostication, "Apres moi, le deluge." Set in 1950, the film concentrates on five Parisian adolescents. Certain that the next war will herald the apocalypse, the youngster make plans to run off to a desert island and set up a new society. This, however, will require money, which is why the boys decide to pull off a "necessary" robbery. Idealism collapses in the face of cold reality, as the five youths suffer from the consequences of their actions. Avant le Deluge was one of a group of films cowritten by director Andre Cayatte and Charles Spaak which endeavored to explore the touchy social issues of the day: others in the Cayatte-Spaak canon include the euthanasia-themed Justice est Faite and the capital-punishment tract Nous sommes tous des assassins.
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Cast & Crew
Top billed cast
Antoine Balpetre
as Monsieur Albert Dutoit
Paul Bisciglia
as Jean-Jacques Noblet
Bernard Blier
as Monsieur Marcel Noblet
Jacques Castelot
as Serge de Montesson
Jacques Chabassol
as Jean Arnaud
Clement Thierry
as Philippe Boussard
Roger Coggio
as Daniel Epstein
Leonce Corne
as Le commissaire Auvain
Jacques Fayet
as Richard Dutoit
Paul Frankeur
as Monsieur Boussard
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