Claude Laydu

Acting

Claude Laydu

Born March 10, 1927 · Etterbeek, Belgique

Died July 29, 2011 · aged 84

Claude Laydu ([klod lɛjdy]; 10 March 1927 – 29 July 2011) was a Belgian-born Swiss actor on stage and in films. He was renowned for his performance in his film debut in the role of the young priest in Robert Bresson's Diary of a Country Priest (1951), which has been described as one of the greatest in the history of film. Laydu was born and grew up in Brussels. He moved to Paris to study at the N…

Known For

Diary of a Country PriestDiary of a Country Priest · 1951
Diary of a Country Priest
7.51951
MovieDrama
An inexperienced, sickly priest shows up in the rural French community of Ambricourt, where he joins the community's clergy. But the locals don't take kindly to the priest, and his ascetic ways and unsociable demeanor make him an outcast. During Bible studies at the nearby girls school, he is continually mocked by his students. Then his attempt to intervene in a family feud backfires into a scandal. His failures, compounded with his declining health, begin to erode his faith.
AttilaAttila · 1954
Attila
5.41954
MovieDramaWar
Attila, the leader of the barbarian Huns and called by the Romans "The Scourge of God", sweeps onto the Italian peninsula, defeating all of the armies of Rome, until he and his men reach the gates of the city itself.
We Are All MurderersWe Are All Murderers · 1952
We Are All Murderers
6.71952
MovieCrimeDrama
Originally titled Nous Sommes Tout des Assassins, We Are All Murderers was directed by Andre Cayette, a former lawyer who detested France's execution system. Charles Spaak's screenplay makes no attempt to launder the four principal characters (Marcel Mouloudji, Raymond Pellegrin, Antoinine Balpetre, Julien Verdeir): never mind the motivations, these are all hardened murderers. Still, the film condemns the sadistic ritual through which these four men are brought to the guillotine. In France, the policy is to never tell the condemned man when the execution will occur--and then to show up without warning and drag the victim kicking and screaming to his doom, without any opportunity to make peace with himself or his Maker. By the end of this harrowing film, the audience feels as dehumanized as the four "protagonists." We Are All Murderers was roundly roasted by the French law enforcement establishment, but it won a special jury prize at the 1952 Cannes Film Festival.
Trip to AmericaTrip to America · 1951
Trip to America
6.51951
MovieComedy
As part of the fascination in post World War II France with American culture, a young French couple here travel to the US to see for themselves the prosperity they have heard about.
Price of LovePrice of Love · 1955
Price of Love
5.41955
MovieCrime
Because he loved a trainer named Suzy too much, honest Pierre Menard wasted his life and died. Innocent, but implicated in the ransacking of a jewelry store, he receives a five-year residence ban, which he ignores, only to find himself reduced to joining Paulo's sinister gang. The police finally arrest him and force him to become an informer if he doesn't want to leave Paris. He accepts and signs his death warrant.
Napoleon RoadNapoleon Road · 1953
Napoleon Road
5.71953
MovieComedy
A greedy advertising executive wants to attract the tourists into a small village:he claims Napoleon slept in the local inn on his was back from Elbe island.
Symphony of LoveSymphony of Love · 1954
Symphony of Love
7.31954
MovieDramaMusic
It is a biopic portraying the life of the composer Franz Schubert.
The Dialogue of the CarmelitesThe Dialogue of the Carmelites · 1960
The Dialogue of the Carmelites
7.41960
MovieDramaHistory
This drama about the Carmelite order of nuns is set during the French Revolution. A young woman seeks refuge with the Carmelites because she is terrified of dying during the upheaval. The longer she associates with the nuns the more she is transformed by their faith and devotion. 

Filmography

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We Are All MurderersWe Are All Murderers · 1952
We Are All Murderers
6.71952
MovieCrimeDrama
Originally titled Nous Sommes Tout des Assassins, We Are All Murderers was directed by Andre Cayette, a former lawyer who detested France's execution system. Charles Spaak's screenplay makes no attempt to launder the four principal characters (Marcel Mouloudji, Raymond Pellegrin, Antoinine Balpetre, Julien Verdeir): never mind the motivations, these are all hardened murderers. Still, the film condemns the sadistic ritual through which these four men are brought to the guillotine. In France, the policy is to never tell the condemned man when the execution will occur--and then to show up without warning and drag the victim kicking and screaming to his doom, without any opportunity to make peace with himself or his Maker. By the end of this harrowing film, the audience feels as dehumanized as the four "protagonists." We Are All Murderers was roundly roasted by the French law enforcement establishment, but it won a special jury prize at the 1952 Cannes Film Festival.

Philippe Arnaud