A subversive film that has become cult, “Les Valseuses” is also marked by a gritty humor that was shocking at the time. Blier’s work today comes under criticism for its misogyny or the way in which he depicts male domination.
“I learn with great sadness of the disappearance of Bertrand Blier. He was a genius dialogue writer, in the tradition of Prévert and Audiard,” reacted the Minister of Culture, Rachida Dati.
“In films that were part of their era, he offered iconic roles to the greatest: Jean-Pierre Marielle, Gérard Depardieu, Miou-Miou, Michel Blanc, Isabelle Huppert, Patrick Dewaere, Josiane Balasko, without forgetting his own father Bernard Blier. Bertrand Blier was an immense and non-conformist filmmaker, a mad lover of the freedom to create,” she added.
In 1979, he won the Oscar for best foreign film for “Prepare your handkerchiefs” and, the following year, the César for best screenwriter for “Cold buffet”.
-He then won the Grand Jury Prize at Cannes and three Césars with “Trop belle pour toi” (1989), not to mention the César for best actress for Carole Bouquet.
The 1990s and 2000s were less prosperous, with the exception of “The Sound of Ice Cubes”, where an alcoholic writer (Jean Dujardin) “dialogues” with his illness who takes the form of a man, played by Albert Dupontel.
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