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Behind the Facade

Name: Behind the Facade
Genre: Crime, Comedy
Released: 1939-03-14
Duration: 90 min
Rating: 7.714

★ 7,7 /10 (7 Votes)

1939 FR 90 min

Overview

In the elevator of two large Parisian buildings, a telegraph operator discovers the body of an elderly woman, Madame Mathieu, the owner of both buildings. Boucheron, the local superintendent, is dispatched to investigate, along with his rival, Inspector Lambert of the "Sûreté". To solve the enigma, they scour staircases and corridors, visiting every floor of both buildings, courtyard and facade. Their gruff rivalry allows them to complement each other in discovering who committed the crime among a gallery of characters, humble or rich, who all have something to be ashamed of... A rare, fast-paced, picturesque comedy set against the backdrop of a police mystery.

Release date

14/03/1939

Votes

Popularity

0.7

" He's a loser, he gets off to a bad start, but when he wants to, he always has the last word: Justice ! "

Genres

Crime Comedy

Status

Released

Original title

Derrière la façade

Language

Runtime

90 min

Lucien Baroux

Commissioner Boucheron, district police officer

Jacques Baumer

Inspector Lambert of the Sûreté

Jules Berry

Alfredo d'Avila, dancer of these ladies

Gaby Morlay

Gaby Valrose, minister's lover

Elvira Popescu

Mrs. Rameau, wife of an industrialist and mistress of Alfredo

Michel Simon

Picking, knife-throwing artist

André Lefaur

Mr. Corbeau, kleptomaniac

Gaby Sylvia

Madeleine Martin, in love with André

Andrex

André Laurent, bank cashier, lover of Madeleine

No photo

Simone Berriau

Lydia, singer at “Perroquet”, mistress of the President

Erich von Stroheim

Eric, German naturalized French

Betty Stockfeld

English, Albert's companion, Eric's mistress

Jacques Dumesnil

Albert Durant, stockbroker and poker player

No photo

Missia

Joséphine, chicken trainer, wife of Picking

Paul Faivre

Concierge of the two buildings

Aimé Clariond

Judge Bernier, President of the Court of Appeal

No photo

Raymond Segard

Robert Bernier, eldest son of the President

No photo

Marcel Orluc

Gérard Bernier, youngest son of the President

Marguerite Moreno

Owner of the "Perroquet" and the festivities upstairs

Gabrielle Dorziat

Mrs. Bernier, wife of the President

Jean Daurand

Telegraphist who discovered the corpse

Robert Ozanne

Brigadier

Julien Carette

Soldier, confined in the room of a “country”

Elmire Vautier

Marie, Lydia's dresser

No photo

Lina Darwils

Tenant

Claude Sainval

Gaby's gigolo

No photo

Raymone

Madame Mathieu's maid

Jean Joffre

Mr. Martin, blind, father of Madeleine

No photo

Lise Courbet

Paulette

Marcel Simon

Jules, government minister and Gaby's lover

Georges Bever

Taxi driver (uncredited)

No photo

Georges Malkine

Taxi driver (uncredited)

Rivers Cadet

Agent (uncredited)

Franck Maurice

Agent (uncredited)

Robert Moor

Agent (uncredited)

Jean Wiener

Pianist of the “Perroquet” (uncredited)

No photo

Yves Mirande

Bum on the bench (uncredited)

No photo

Roger Doucet

(uncredited)

No photo

Hélène Flouest

(uncredited)

Henri Nassiet

(uncredited)

Original Soundtrack

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**Behind the Facade (1939)** A crime has been committed in a very respectable Parisian apartment building... Which of the tenants is the murderer? A shocking investigation for a series of sketches. It also features a fabulous cast of stars from the 1930s/1940s: Jules Berry, Michel Simon, Erich Von Stroheim, Elvire Popesco, Carette, Gaby Morlay, Simone Berriau... Lucien Baroux as Commissaire Boucheron, a policeman from the Quariter, who investigates the murder of a building's owner, and Jacques Baumer as Inspector Lambert, from the Sûreté, a more prestigious service than the local police sta…

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Behind the Facade

Overview

Original Soundtrack

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