Rotten
The film has marvellous atmosphere and a fine cast, but the material, which involves brutal, uncontrollable passion seen in a social framework, turns oppressive, and at times Gabin is a lump.
Pauline Kael, New Yorker
La Bête Humaine
1938 · 1h 38m · NOT RATED
Drama, Romance, Thriller
Directed by
Jean Renoir
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La Bête Humaine
Overview
Returning by train to the French port of Le Havre, Jacques Lantier, a tormented railwayman, meets by chance the impulsive stationmaster Roubard and Séverine, his wife.
Director and cast
- Jean Renoir Director
- Jean Gabin as Jacques Lantier
- Simone Simon as Séverine Roubaud
- Fernand Ledoux as Roubaud (as Ledoux Sociétaire de la Comédie Française)
- Julien Carette as Pecqueux
- Blanchette Brunoy as Flore
- Gérard Landry as Le fils Dauvergne (as Gerard Landry)
- Jenny Hélia as Philomène Sauvagnat (as Jenny Helia)
- Colette Régis Cast
- Claire Gérard Cast
- Charlotte Clasis Cast
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
93%
Tomatometer
Fresh
It is simply a story; a macabre, grim and oddly-fascinating story.
Frank S. Nugent, New York Times
Fresh
Jean Renoir's generous sensibility seems at odds with the sterile determinism of the Zola novel on which this 1938 film was based.
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader
Fresh
Superb performances from Gabin, Simon and Ledoux as the classic tragic love triangle.
Time Out
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