On purge bébé (Baby's Laxative) is Jean Renoir's first sound film, based upon the play by Georges Feydeau. It is a 1931 comedy about a supposedly unbreakable chamberpot and a constipated baby. It is known for mocking the French bourgeoisie.

On purge bébé
Theatrical poster
Directed byJean Renoir
Written byGeorges Feydeau (play)
Produced byPierre Braunberger
StarringMarguerite Pierry
Jacques Louvigny
Michel Simon
CinematographyTheodor Sparkuhl
Edited byJean Mamy
Music byPaul Misraki
Distributed byLes Etablissement Braunberger-Richebé
Release date
  • 21 June 1931 (1931-06-21)
Running time
52 minutes
CountryFrance
LanguageFrench

Renoir made the film in a record three weeks (from script to finished film) in order to get backing for other projects. His next film was La Chienne.

Synopsis

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Mr. Follavoine seeks to sell unbreakable chamberpots to the French army. In an attempt to close the deal, he invites Chouilloux, an influential official of the Ministry of hosts, for dinner to discuss putting his chamberpots on the market. But on that same day, Follavoine's son is constipated and Mrs. Follavoine tries to force him to take his laxative, but he flat out refuses to take it. From that point on, nothing goes as planned.

Release

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On 14 June 2016, American video-distribution company The Criterion Collection released On purge bébé, newly restored through a 4K digital transfer, as a bonus feature for the release of La Chienne on Blu-ray and DVD.

References

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  1. Kristin Thompson and David Bordwell, Film History: An Introduction.
  2. On purge bébé
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