This was a rare title from the book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, one of the few films listed that is either difficult to find or completely unavailable on DVD or online, but thank goodness I found this French film eventually. Basically on his 54th birthday, a Cheat (Sacha Guitry) is sitting in a café writing his memoirs, he recalls his experiences in life, and this is seen in flashbacks. At age 12, the young Cheat (Serge Grave) is caught stealing money from a grocery store, as punishment he is not allowed to enjoy a dinner of mushrooms with his family. These mushrooms turn out to be poisonous, everyone is shocked that he is the only survivor, while his parents, siblings, uncle and grandparents all die. His mother's unscrupulous Cousin Moriot (Pierre Labry) takes charge of him, he uses his inheritance for his own benefit, to the youngster it appears that dishonesty pays. The young Cheat runs away and works at various jobs, such as doorman and hotel bellhop. In Paris, fellow restaurant worker Serge Abramovich (Roger Duchesne) draws the unwilling young Cheat into a plot to assassinate the visiting Czar Nicholas II of Russia, however an anonymous letter (which the Cheat implies he wrote) leads to Abramovich and the other plotters being arrested. The young Cheat finds work at the Hotel de Paris in Monaco as an elevator operator, there he catches the eye of The Countess (Elmire Vautie), a much older woman, they have a fling. Coincidentally, in the present day, the elderly Countess (Marguerite Moreno) and the Cheat are reunited in the café, but to his relief, she does not recognise him. As an adult, the Cheat has a stint in the army, after this ends he decides to work as a croupier in a casino in Monaco, a profession that rewards honesty. However, he is forced to return to the French Army at the start of the First World War, he is injured almost immediately. He is rescued by fellow soldier Charbonnier (Henri Peiffert), who loses his right arm as a result, but the army loses track of the Cheat, allowing him to spend the war reading books. Now a civilian again, the Cheat meets a beautiful woman (Rosine Deréan) at a restaurant, they spend a night together, and she confesses that she is a professional thief. The woman enlists him to help in her in the theft of a valuable ring from a jeweller, though they are successful, the Cheat slips away and returns to working as a croupier. At the roulette table, attractive regular Henriette (Jacqueline Delubac) believes where the ball can land on each spin, and indeed she wins consistently over the next few days. They become partners and she shares her winnings with him, the Cheat then asks her to marry him for convenience, to which she agrees. However, Henriette loses all the money she had won before, other gamblers start winning big, leading to the Cheat being fired, ironically for being unable to cheat, then the couple obtain a quick divorce. He then becomes a professional card cheat, using numerous disguises, then one day, while in disguise, he spots his former wife and the Jewel Thief together at a gambling table, they are evidently friends. The two women are unaware of his identity when the Cheat invites them to share his bet, if he wins, he does, and they go to dinner together, the clueless women indicate they are willing to go to bed with him, he chooses his ex-wife, as they have not slept together before. Later, Charbonnier shows up at the casino, it is only being cheated at baccarat that he reveals he recognises him, fortunately they tie, but filled with shame, the Cheat decides to quit cheating. Charbonnier has unwittingly cured the Cheat of his vice, but he infects him with another, the love for gambling, therefore the Cheat loses all his ill-gotten gains in a matter of months. Back in the present day, the Countess finally recognises her former lover, she tries to recruit him to help rob the house across the street. The Cheat declines, explaining that the house was formerly his, and that since losing his fortune he has embarked on the only honest job that utilises his skills, he is a security officer. Director Sacha Guitry had made a career with work on the stage, but he proves he is capable of something cinematic, based on his own novel, it is a really clever way of creating a film. Apart from the odd dialogue scene in the café, the film consists of Guitry narrating everything, the actors simply use their facial expressions and physicality during the voiceover, this adds to the humour, and it is an interesting story of fortune, seduction and deception, a worthwhile comedy drama. Very good!
Review of The Story of a Cheat
