Pre Code Hollywood Season: FD Cinematheque

Little Cafe, The (1930)

The Little Cafe (French:Le petit café) is a 1931 French-language American Pre-Code musical film directed by Ludwig Berger and starring Maurice Chevalier, Yvonne Vallée and Tania Fédor. The film is a foreign-language version of the 1930 film Playboy of Paris, which was based on the play The Little Cafe by Tristan Bernard. Multiple-language versions were common in the years following the introduction of sound film, before the practice of dubbing became widespread.

The film received a better reception from critics than the English-language version had.^[1]

Synopsis

Albert Loriflan, a waiter in a Paris cafe, unexpectedly inherits a large sum of money from a wealthy relative. His unscrupulous boss, Philibert, refuses to release him from his long-term contract in the hope that Albert will buy him off with a large payment. But Albert refuses, and continues to work at the cafe even though he is now very rich. Before long he falls in love with Philibert’s daughter Yvonne.

Cast

• Maurice Chevalier as Albert Lorifian
• Yvonne Vallée as Yvonne Philibert
• Tania Fédor as Mademoiselle Berengère
• André Berley as Pierre Bourdin
• Emile Chautard as Philibert
• Françoise Rosay as Mademoiselle Edwige
• George Davis as Paul Michel
• Jacques Jou-Jerville as M. Cadeaux
• André Baugé
• Sonia Sebor

References

1. Jump up^ Bradley p.119

Bibliography

• Bradley, Edwin M. The First Hollywood Musicals: A Critical Filmography Of 171 Features, 1927 Through 1932. McFarland, 2004.

Film Collectors Corner

Watch The Little Cafe Now – You Tube Instant Video

Blu Ray

Not released on Blu Ray 

 

DVD

Not released on DVD