Film still of Le Salaire de la peur (The Wages of Fear) © RR
Henri-Georges Clouzot sets off on an adventure with Le Salaire de la peur (The Wages of Fear)
The French director Henri-Georges Clouzot, known for his realist, noir style showcased in films like Le Corbeau (1943) and Quai des orfèvres (1947), would have celebrated his 110th birthday this year. Cannes Classics is marking the occasion by rediscovering one of his masterpieces in a restored copy. Le Salaire de la peur (The wages of fear), won him the Grand Prix at the Festival de Cannes in 1953.
Le Salaire de la peur (The wages of fear) follows four adventurers, played by Yves Montand, Charles Vanel, Peter Van Eyck and Folco Lulli, who set out on a long, perilous journey to transport a load of nitroglycerine over 500 kilometres in exchange for a large sum of money.
Having been awarded the Grand Prix at the Festival de Cannes in 1953, equivalent to today's Palme d'or, and the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival in the same year, Le Salaire de la peur stands out as one of the director's most successful films.
The showing of a restored copy of the film at Cannes Classics forms a part of a year-long, national tribute to Henri-Georges Clouzot. The fact that 2017 marks what would have been his 110th birthday is an opportunity to revisit his career and rediscover his works at many events. After Cannes Classics, the celebrations will continue in the autumn at the Festival Lumière in Lyon, which will show all of the director's films in restored copies. That retrospective will be followed by an exhibition at the Cinémathèque Française, Paris, from November which will extend the "Clouzot year" until July 2018.
A TF1 Studio presentation, in association with the Cinémathèque Française and supported by the CNC, the Monaco Audiovisual Archives, Kodak and CGR cinémas. The 4K restoration from a nitrate negative print and a reproduced soundtrack was carried out by Hiventy. Please note this showing is a prelude to a major Clouzot event planned in France for autumn 2017.
