Philippe Noiret

With his slightly stocky frame and a likably average, hangdog face with sad eyes, Philippe Noiret has long been one of the most highly acclaimed and prolific of contemporary French screen actors. Over the years, his exceptional versatility has enabled him to disguise his features in countless ways and to play a wide range of middle-class husbands, fathers and career figures. He had enjoyed ten successful years with the Theatre Nationale Populaire in Paris (and played one or two bit parts in films) before he made his full-fledged film acting debut in Agnes Verde's "La Pointe Courte" in 1954. Noiret first attracted attention in film for his portrayal of the unhappy uncle in Louis Malle's delightfully frantic farce "Zazie Dans Le Metro" (1960) and, soon thereafter, gave an award-winning performance as a stuffy but quietly vengeful husband in Georges Franju's superb adaptation of "Theresa Desqueyroux" (1962).