“I love it when I feel wanted”

In 1960, The Cinema Notebooks wrote: “Claude Lelouch, remember this name, you will never hear of it again. ” Magnifying glass ! For more than sixty years, he has filmed humankind with spontaneity to try to convey his taste for others. Because, for this kid from World War II, life is a game in which truth and lies are in a constant battle.

Meet in his office at Club 13, a veritable cabinet of curiosities: filming claps from Itinerary of a spoiled childand ofAdventure is adventurehis camera A man and a woman. A whole chabadabada that makes my head spin like a circular tracking shot à la Lelouch. He sits in his chair and says: “You’re looking at a happy man, and he’s a dying breed!” ” Engine. (Not even afraid.) Action!

In Beaune, Claude Lelouch’s “little Hollywood”

LA TRIBUNE SUNDAY — Finally…

CLAUDE LELOUCH — Ultimately, life has to serve a purpose. When we get closer to the finish line, there are certainties about the human race that we want to pass on to our children and grandchildren. And it’s true that all the trouble we go through in life is to love and be loved. Everything else is a consolation prize. I have always been fascinated by the race of seduction to share the same bed, then after even more difficulty not to go there anymore. Love is punishment and reward.

It's what gives meaning to your life…

Every second that isn't spent on love is a second wasted. I've tried all my life to film men and women who seemed a little less disgusting to me than the others. Life is a fool's errand in wonderland.

Where does your optimism come from?

My family escaped the Gestapo so life became a game. And then I always ran away from the grumpy people, detected the cheats, because it's through them that the trouble comes…

And you, have you ever cheated in love?

Obviously ! We're all peddlers trying to sell the best things about us. When I meet a woman, I sell her my qualities and not my faults.

Antoine de Caunes: “Why tell you about my doubts? »

What do you sell to women?

Curiosity, but which is as much a fault… I am nothing other than a janitor. I like to observe the people on the first, second, third floors. But you know, it was always the women who came for me, I never needed to flirt. I haven't been single for a second in my entire life.

Wouldn't there be an element of pride?

No, because I very quickly understood that it was the women who opened and closed the doors. It's already so hard to make love with a woman who agrees, if on top of that you have to force her, it's really not my thing. I love it when I feel like someone is interested in me, when I feel wanted.

If it's not pride, is it machismo?

What do you mean by being macho? When a woman comes into my life, I take care of her. I am here to protect her and very proud to be able to offer her a little comfort…

Wow… your words may shock some women!

Well they would be wrong, because they have all the advantages. You should also not spit in the soup. All women like to be looked at. We can clearly see how much trouble they go to. So, if a man looks at them, it doesn't hurt anyone. And then I always thought that women were successful men. Everyone I loved was much more mature than me. I am only beginning my first life as a man. Until now, I was just a child.

“When you dance, you can’t cheat” (Aurélie Dupont, star dancer and author)

Weren't some women more interested in Lelouch than Claude?

[Rires.] It’s true that I had more success after the Palme d’Or! But that's normal, because love always begins with admiration. But be careful, love for bodies wears out very quickly. So without admiration, love cannot be strong. When I see my wife, Valérie Perrin, writing, I can only fall in love with her.

Do you ever feel the need for solitude?

Only to work. So I take my car, turn on my tape recorder and record the dialogues that come to me spontaneously. I can travel thousands of kilometers, sleep in my car on a highway rest area to create my scenario.

Why did you hide your story with Annie Girardot for a long time?

Because she was married and so was I! It was very complicated, but our story remains a sublime memory.

In the film Barbara Pravi singsThe Madness of Feelings . What's the craziest thing you've done?

Every time I entered into adultery. We remain faithful until we find something better.

You admitted to using prostitutes. For what ?

Because they are wonderful and fascinating. I thank them because they helped me out several times. These are often women who have been very much in love, who have been disappointed and who, in some way, take revenge.

So you went there out of curiosity?

No. First, it was a prostitute who taught me how to make love. Around 15-16 years old, I said to myself “I might as well go see the pros” . She trained me in the games of love. And they don't expect anything in return. It's not life insurance.

What is your relationship like with your little sister, Martine?

For a long time I saw her as a little baby because we are ten years apart. And then, as time passed, she played her role as a sister in an extraordinary way, protecting me all the time. With Martine, I am close.

What if you hadn't become a filmmaker?

I would have liked to be a lawyer to defend indefensible people. I think we all have excuses.

Monica Bellucci: “I like to return to the shadows”

In 1989, you were on Simone Veil's list for the European elections. What were your relationships?

I hate politics because politicians are interested in anything that doesn't work. I'm interested in anything that works. But Simone called me, and you can't say no to this woman. So, I talked to her like you talk to a friend. Simone is extraordinary. And then she also loved Normandy. Several times, we found ourselves in a restaurant at the Haie Tondue motorway exit.

What would you like as an epitaph?

“Coming soon on this screen!”» But before I die, I definitely don't want to be a chore for others. So, I would like to go as in a Claude Lelouch film and, why not, in my next life write a book on Claude Lelouch. He's a guy I know very well…

What's Claude Lelouch's Sunday like?

It's a day when the phone rings less, but my brain, this infernal machine, still continues to think because good ideas never take time off! The store is open all the time.