For today’s round of online store additions, the titles selected are Jean Renoir’s “Elena and Her Men,” Brian De Palma’s “Sisters,” and Raoul Walsh’s “The Tall Men.”
Jean Renoir, the son of famed French Impressionist painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir, got his start at the tail end of the silent era before reeling off an impressive flurry of films (as many as a half-dozen of them could rightfully be regarded as masterpieces) during the 1930s. The 40s would not go as well — after the German invasion of France Renoir went to Hollywood, where his work within the studio system more often than not produced lackluster results. However, 1949 would see a comeback for Renoir with his Indian film “The River,” which was followed by a return to Europe for a trio of Technicolor musical comedies: “The Golden Coach,” “French Cancan,” and “Elena and Her Men.” “Elena…” stars another Hollywood exile, Ingrid Bergman, as an alluring Polish princess who is a muse of sorts, inspiring the men in her life to great heights.