La Bête Humaine

La Bête Humaine

Synopsis

The third Renoir-Gabin collaboration turns Zola’s naturalist novel into a prototypical film noir. Gabin plays Jacques Lantier, a train driver with a fatal alcoholic inheritance who witnesses a murder and falls for the dangerous, kittenish Séverine (Simone Simon). Gabin is pivotal to the film’s ability to weld together a social picture of workers’ solidarity (he was decorated by the railworkers’ union for his authentic portrayal) and a powerful, dark crime melodrama.