Boudu Saved from Drowning
dir. Jean Renoir · 1932
Plot
Michel Simon gives one of the most memorable performances in screen history as Boudu, a Parisian tramp who takes a suicidal plunge into the Seine and is rescued by a well-to-do bookseller, Edouard Lestingois. The Lestingois family decides to take in the irrepressible bum, and he shows his gratitude by shaking the household to its foundations. With Boudu Saved from Drowning, legendary director Jean Renoir takes advantage of a host of Parisian locations and the anarchic charms of his lead actor to create an effervescent satire of the bourgeoisie.
Why watch
A Parisian bookseller, Edouard Lestingois, rescues Boudu, a disheveled tramp, from drowning in the Seine, only to find his life turned upside down. Watching Boudu Saved from Drowning is like being swept into a whirlwind of anarchic energy, where the boundaries of social class blur and the absurdity of human behavior takes center stage.