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Boudu Saved From Drowning (Bondé sauvé des eaux) (1932)

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Average Rating: N/A
Critic Reviews: 2
Fresh: 2 | Rotten: 0

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Average Rating: 3.6/5
User Ratings: 5,336

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Movie Info

Boudu (played by Michel Simon, who also produced the film) is a shaggy, foul-smelling tramp who is rescued from drowning by bourgeois Frenchman Charles Granval. Deciding to "reform" Boudu, Granval invites the hobo into his home. Boudu returns the favor by turning the household upside down and by conducting an affair with Granval's wife Marcella Hainia. All ends happily--for Boudu at least--when the tramp wins the national lottery and marries maid Severine Lerczynska, who is so delighted that she

Unrated, 1 hr. 27 min.

Art House & International, Comedy

Jean Renoir, Rene Fauchois

Aug 23, 2005

Pathé Contemporary Films

Cast

All Critics (23) | Top Critics (4) | Fresh (25) | Rotten (0) | DVD (15)

Amid the early-talkie crudeness you can see Renoir discover what it means to visually evoke the unpredictable flow of life with composition, movement, and depth.

May 9, 2007 Full Review Source: Village Voice | Comment
Village Voice
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Jean Renoir's effortless 1932 masterpiece is as informal, beguiling, and subversive as its eponymous hero.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | Comment
Chicago Reader
Top Critic IconTop Critic

It's hard to imagine cinema without Boudu Saved From Drowning.

December 16, 2010 Full Review Source: Daily Telegraph | Comment
Daily Telegraph

It's a neat idea, executed to fine comic effect thanks mainly to a larger-than-life performance from the great French character actor, Michel Simon.

December 16, 2010 Full Review Source: Radio Times | Comment
Radio Times

There is an ingenious performance from Michel Simon as the libidinous tramp and many entertaining comic touches.

December 15, 2010 Full Review Source: Financial Times | Comment
Financial Times

This deliciously subversive 1932 social comedy kicked off Jean Renoir's greatest period.

December 15, 2010 Full Review Source: Total Film | Comment
Total Film

Tier two Renoir, but well worth hunting down, not least for Michael Simon's mighty Catweazle beard.

December 13, 2010 Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | Comment
Empire Magazine

The film needs no justification outside itself as a rich, funny, rewarding experience.

August 12, 2009 Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | Comment
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

This social comedy is another masterpiece from Renoir.

August 30, 2006 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | Comment
TV Guide's Movie Guide

The most startling thing about Boudu is just how incredibly fresh it remains.

February 9, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out | Comment

This film from 1932 shows Renoir's gift for storytelling and comedy.

December 31, 2005 Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | Comment
Guardian [UK]

Boudu Saved From Drowning is one of Jean Renoir's most enjoyable films. Its wit, freshness and spontaneity continue to impress.

December 27, 2005 Full Review Source: BBC | Comment

The film... mixes its laughs with a certain social poignancy, and one of Renoir's gifts as a filmmaker is the manner in which he blends the two so seamlessly.

September 23, 2005 Full Review Source: Now Playing Magazine | Comment

Boudu swings his swang and puts the smack down on le petit bourgeoisie.

August 24, 2005 Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | Comment
Slant Magazine

Even enterprise without state can be amply rewarded in the films of Renoir.

August 24, 2005 Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | Comment
Slant Magazine

Recognized for its marvelous characterizations, its splendid acting and its inventive film technique.

August 22, 2005 Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | Comment
Ozus' World Movie Reviews
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for Boudu Saved From Drowning (Bondé sauvé des eaux)

Anyone who has seen "Down and Out in Beverly Hills" knows the thumbnail plot of Jean Renoir's "Boudu Saved from Drowning": a nihilistic bum is taken in by a generous, upscale couple and (contrary to Hollywood formula) abuses their kindness and does not transform into a wonderful citizen. But people

April 23, 2011
Eric Broome

Super Reviewer

Beautifully filmed, satirical and comedic fantasy from. With Simon in the lead, it's hard not to think of this in relation to the conclusion of La Chienne. NOTE 6/09 Not sure why the description says 1967 - This is an early sound film from 1932

June 3, 2009

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Foreign Titles

  • Boudu Saved From Drowning (1932) (DE)
  • Boudu Saved From Drowning (1932) (UK)
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