
Writing
René Barjavel
Born 1911-01-24 · Nyons, Drôme, France
René Barjavel (24 January 1911 – 24 November 1985) was a French author, journalist and critic who may have been the first to think of the grandfather paradox in time travel. He was born in Nyons, a town in the Drôme department in southeastern France. He is best known as a science fiction author, whose work often involved the fall of civilisation due to technocratic hubris and the madness of war, but who also favoured themes emphasising the durability of love. René Barjavel wrote several novels with these themes, such as Ravage (translated as Ashes, ashes), Le Grand Secret, La Nuit des temps (translated as The Ice People), and Une rose au paradis. His writing is poetic, dreamy and sometimes philosophical. Some of his works have their roots in an empirical and poetic questioning of the existence of God (notably La Faim du tigre). He was also interested in the environmental heritage which we leave to future generations. Whilst his works are rarely taught in French schools, his books are very popular in France. Barjavel wrote Le Voyageur imprudent (1943), the first novel to present the famous Grandfather paradox of time travel: if one goes backwards in time and kills one of their ancestors before he had children, the traveller cannot exist and therefore cannot kill the ancestor. Barjavel died in 1985 and was buried with his ancestors in Tarendol (commune) cemetery, opposite Mount Ventoux in Provence. He used these place names in his books; Mount Ventoux appears as the site of the space base in Colomb de la lune, for example, and Tarendol is the name of the hero in the eponymous novel. Source: Article "René Barjavel" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA.
Acting credits
Behind the camera
7.6In a village of the Po valley where the earth is hard and life miserly, the priest and the communist mayor are always fighting to be the head of the community. If in secret, they admired and liked each other, politics still divided them as it is dividing the country. And when the mayor wants his "People's House"; the priest wants his "Garden City" for the poor. Division exist between the richest and the poorest, the pious and the atheists and even between lovers. But if the people are hard as the country, they are good in the bottom of there heart.
The Little World of Don Camillo
1952
7.2In 19th century France, Jean Valjean, a man imprisoned for stealing bread, must flee a relentless policeman named Javert. The pursuit consumes both men's lives, and soon Valjean finds himself in the midst of the student revolutions in France.
Les Misérables
1958
6.0Boulevard focuses on Georges 'Jojo' Castagnier, an adolescent who lives in a poor room under the roof of a block of apartments in the Pigalle section of Paris. He ran away from home when he realized that his step-mother hated him from day-one. Among Jojo's many neighbors is the gorgeous Jenny Dorr , a nightclub dancer, whose lover he dreams of being. But, to Jojo's disappointment, Jenny becomes the lover of Dicky, a former boxer, who spends his time loafing about the Pigalle cafés. Jojo lacks for steady work, but manages to meet his financial obligations with a series of odd jobs. He tries selling magazines, which is a success for a while, though posing as Narcissus for two gay artists proves to be something of a disaster. Eventually, he woos Marietta, one of his other neighbors and a girl more suited to his age. But when things go really awry, Jojo becomes desperate and tries to commit suicide by jumping off the roof of his building
Boulevard
1960
5.4It is Summer. It is the right time for love, especially in a most romantic place as Golfo del Tigullio. Different stories: Dorina looking for a rich lover; Clara who takes a fancy to the young Walter while her daughter Lina tries to save her; Aristarco who gave up his career to follow Ada's, but who likes Jacqueline; Renata who is offered by her husband to Ferrari to get money; Marcello who, extraditing Micheline to France, misses the train and falls in love with her.
Love on the Riviera
1958
7.2Energetic priest Don Camillo returns to the town of Brescello for more political and personal duels with Communist mayor Peppone.
The Return of Don Camillo
1953
5.5Heralded racing driver Pierre Chaillot has never noticed the pretty young flight attendant who dotes on him adoringly. But when his fiancée's infidelity drives him to the brink of suicide, Pierre's guardian angel takes the form of this stewardess to urge him to choose life. Though the angel confesses her divinity, Pierre is skeptical of the existence of angels. But, despite their difference, the two bond during her brief sojourn in human form.
An Angel on Wheels
1959
6.3A terminally ill Mr. Bard, a casino bus driver forced to quit his job, miraculously wins a fortune playing roulette. Instantly becoming a millionaire, he wants to fulfill his life's dream: to become a father. This plan is opposed by his greedy relatives who would go any low to take this money away from him. They are being led by a small-time crook. Mr. Bard's natural shyness and good heart lead him to the journey of self-exploration and finding his true love.
Strange Desire of Mr. Bard
1954
6.3Duclos's son, a worldly gangster, is compromised in a case of which he is innocent. The proof of this innocence is in the hands of a "competitor", the Marquis de Chemantel de Beauvoiron, a misguided aristocrat. He asked for $ 10 million to cede the document. Duclos will then imagine Chemantel contracting $ 10 million in life insurance for his son. As he discovered in Rome a tramp, a look-alike of the marquis, he will bring this man to Paris and arrange for him to die accidentally.
Toto in Paris
1958
7.1A Paris-based doctor tries to spread the gospel of Natural Childbirth. Working in a cloistered rural community, Gabin runs up against the stone walls of fear and prejudice. His theories are proven sound when unwed mother Nicole Courcel gives birth within Gabin's methodology. The childbirth sequence is filmed straight-on with a delicate combination of taste and frankness. Nonetheless, the lurid ad campaign of Cas Du Dr. Laurent sensationalized this sequence all out of proportion.
The Case of Dr. Laurent
1957
7.3Goubbiah is a Yugoslav sponge fisherman. He loves Trinida, but she is promised to Peppo, the village drunkard. Jao tries to keep Goubbiah away from his daughter.
Goubbiah and the Gipsy Girl
1956
9.0When her father died, Dominique de Bellocombes inherited her ancestors' château, some worthless shares and a mine in Spain. To save the castle, which is in danger of falling into ruin, and pay off her debts, she is determined to marry Armand de Puysherbeux, whom she doesn't love, but who is rich. The situation changes abruptly, however, when news comes through that the Spanish mine holds a vein of untapped gold. Dominique leaves for Andalusia, abandoning her fiancé. Her fiancé, determined not to give up on the beautiful Dominique, precedes her to the site, destroys the plans and claims that the engineer is mad...
Nuits andalouses
1954
Doris Putzke is fond of dating men in her quest to find the perfect one. In her brief relationships, she goes from one disillusionment to another, constantly deluding herself about the intentions of her lovers.
The High Life
1960
5.8In the 16th century, as Flanders is invaded by the Spanish, Till the Mischievous uses stratagems to enter the service of Ferdinand Alvare de Toledo, Duke of Alba, and from there organize resistance against the invaders.
Bold Adventure
1956
NRNo synopsis available yet.
Le Grand Secret
1989
10.0Télévision, oeil de demain predicted smartphones and video calling. The film was based on a premise from the science fiction author René Barjavel, called Cinema Total, 1944.
Television, the Eye of Tomorrow
1947

