Sign of the Lion (1959)

Original title

Le Signe du Lion

Directed by

Éric Rohmer

Genre

drama film

Country

France

Runtime

1h 43m

Rated

12

Rating

7.0 of 10 from 63 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A man named Pierre learns he might inherit a fortune. He waits for the money in a summer Paris but discovers it went to a cousin. He falls into poverty and despair until a friend brings news that the cousin died and Pierre truly inherited the wealth.

slow-burnmelancholicbleakcontemplativegroundedatmosphericrestrainedurban

What happens

Le Signe du lion (The Sign of Leo) is a black and white French drama film directed by Éric Rohmer, which was filmed on location in Paris in the summer of 1959 but not released until May 1962, and is not among his Six Moral Tales. It is his first full-length work. Along with The 400 Blows and À Double Tour by Claude Chabrol, who produced The Sign of Leo, it counts as one of the first films of the French New Wave. The title refers to the Zodiac sign of Leo, under which the protagonist says he was born, and much of the plot revolves around notions of luck and fate. The penniless Pierre believes he has inherited a fortune but, when told it went to a cousin, sinks into indigence and despair. Then he is found by a friend who says the cousin has died and Pierre has really inherited the fortune. The film was not a commercial success and for eight years afterwards Rohmer concentrated on short films and on his work at the influential film magazine Cahiers du cinéma. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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• The Cousins (1959)
• Le fric (1959)
• The 400 Blows (1959)
• Les Mordus (1960)
• Enemy in the Shadows (1960)
• Le chemin des écoliers (1959)
• I Spit on Your Grave (1959)