Les Films du Jeudi brings back Renoir, Gabin and Belmondo classics
French catalogue holder Les Films du Jeudi has lined up new outings for four titles from its vaults, from Jean Renoir's first credited silent film to a 1960s comedy with Jean-Paul Belmondo.
Managing director Laurence Braunberger shared the slate exclusively with Variety ahead of the Classic Film Market's annual Catalogue Holders' Premiere Presentation during the Lumière Festival in Lyon, as reported by Variety. The presentation is where owners of older films show exhibitors, festivals and distributors what is ready for re-release.
The earliest title is 1924's Une vie sans joie (Catherine), the first film attributed to Jean Renoir, co-directed by Albert Dieudonné. Les Films du Jeudi carried out the 4K restoration, a frame-by-frame clean-up to ultra-sharp quality, with the Cinémathèque Française and with support from the CNC, the French film body.
It will come first from Tamasa in a DVD/Blu-ray box set. Then it will play in theatres in 2027 as part of a retrospective, a series of screenings tracing Renoir's silent work.
The company is also bringing back Miroir (1946) by Raymond Lamy. The timing links to the 50th anniversary of the death of its star Jean Gabin. In the film, Gabin plays Monsieur Lussac, a financier by day who leads a double life as a gang chief called Mirror in Marseilles by night.
Another return is Pierre Gaspard-Huit's 1954 crime drama Sophie et le crime (Girl on the Third Floor). It is based on the novel by Cécil Saint-Laurent and stars Marina Vlady with Jean Gaven and Peter van Eyck. The CNC supported its 4K restoration.
Vlady died on Sept. 24 in Paris at the age of 88, according to Variety. The re-release puts one of her early leading roles back into circulation.
The fourth title is Jean Becker's 1965 comedy Tendre voyou (Tender Scoundrel) with Belmondo. Its return coincides with screenings at the Cinémathèque Française in Paris as part of the ongoing Belmondo retrospective.
Les Films du Jeudi was founded by producer Pierre Braunberger and holds a catalogue of more than 400 films. The company describes the collection as one of France's last remaining major independent film catalogues.
The Lyon market around the announcement has its own full programme. The 2026 Classic Film Market honours Greece and spotlights Taiwan, as reported by Variety, while the Coen brothers are the Lumière Award honorees for 2026, according to the Festival Lumière.
For fans, this means more than listings. A silent from 1924, a post-war Gabin crime story, a 1950s thriller and a Belmondo comedy are each getting cleaned prints, discs and cinema dates.
