Carnaval

"Manon Des sources " was Pagnol 's last hurrah ,and it's both his final masterpiece and his swansong in the cinema field ; "carnaval "is credited to Henri Verneuil ,though some historians list it in Pagnol''s filmography.

The screenplay written by Pagnol is too repetitive to be really enthusing ; one feels a Sacha Guitry influence ,but it's generally devoid of the latter's wit . To tell to the whole world you're a cuckhold ,it may be funny in the first thirty minutes (and Pauline Carton is hilarious),but after a while it drags on and on when you keep repeating it.The title is a misnommer for the carnival appears after more than an hour,unless the writer sees the events as a burlesque vision of life: the wife insists her husband be examined by a shrink who reveals himself zanier than his patient .

There's the obligatory song , on a float where the cuckold gathers his unfortunate mates ;and there's Fernandel's final monologue which proves that he was as gifted an actor as anyone in comedy or in drama,but pick up "regain" ,"Angèle" or "la fille du puisatier" instead.