The Fire Within
1963 · 108 min · ★ 7.6 · Drama
Depressed Alain Leroy leaves the clinic where he was detoxified. He meets friends, acquaintances and women, trying to find a reason to continue living.
Directed by Louis Malle · Written by Louis Malle
Your Rating
Where to Watch
Cast
-
Maurice Ronet Alain Leroy -
Léna Skerla Lydia -
Yvonne Clech Mademoiselle Farnoux -
Hubert Deschamps D'Averseau -
Jean-Paul Moulinot Dr. La Barbinais -
Mona Dol Madame La Barbinais -
Pierre Moncorbier Moraine - R René Dupuy Charlie (as René Dupuis)
-
Bernard Tiphaine Milou -
Bernard Noël Dubourg -
Ursula Vian-Kübler Fanny -
Jeanne Moreau Eva
Make it a double feature
3h 20m togetherBoth from Louis Malle.
More from Louis MalleSee all →
The Bardot mystery · 2012The Bardot mystery
★ 10.02012
MovieDocumentary
Who hides behind Brigitte Bardot? Extraordinarily photogenic, a tumultuous love life, the ultimate sex symbol for the 1950s and 1960s, the actress, singer and animal rights activist left an indelible mark on her era. Despite over 30,000 photos published in the press, her true personality has long-remained in the shadows.
Elevator to the Gallows · 1958Elevator to the Gallows
★ 7.61958
MovieCrimeDrama
A self-assured businessman murders his employer, husband of his mistress, which unintentionally provokes an ill-fated chain of events.
La Vie de Bohème · 1992La Vie de Bohème
★ 7.51992
MovieComedyDrama
Three penniless artists become friends in modern-day Paris: Rodolfo, an Albanian painter with no visa, Marcel, a playwright and magazine editor with no publisher, and Schaunard, a post-modernist composer of execrable noise.
Au Revoir les Enfants · 1987Au Revoir les Enfants
★ 7.51987
MovieDramaWar
Au revoir les enfants tells a heartbreaking story of friendship and devastating loss concerning two boys living in Nazi-occupied France. At a provincial Catholic boarding school, the precocious youths enjoy true camaraderie—until a secret is revealed. Based on events from writer-director Malle’s own childhood, the film is a subtle, precisely observed tale of courage, cowardice, and tragic awakening.
My Dinner with Andre · 1981My Dinner with Andre
★ 7.51981
MovieDramaComedy
Wally, a struggling playwright and actor, reluctantly agrees to catch up with his old friend Andre, a theater director who disappeared several years prior in order to travel the world. Meeting at a posh Manhattan restaurant, the two share life stories, anecdotes and philosophical musings over the course of an evening meal.
Lacombe, Lucien · 1974Lacombe, Lucien
★ 7.01974
MovieDramaWar
In Louis Malle's lauded drama, Lucien Lacombe is a young man living in rural France during World War II who seeks to join the French Resistance. When he is rejected due to his youth, the resentful Lucien allies himself with the Nazis and joins the Gallic arm of their Gestapo. Lucien grows to enjoy the power that comes with his position, but his life is complicated when he falls for France Horn, a beautiful young Jewish woman.
Murmur of the Heart · 1971Murmur of the Heart
★ 7.01971
MovieDramaComedy
This loosely plotted coming-of-age tale follows the life of 15-year-old Laurent Chevalier as he stumbles his way over the burgeoning swell of adolescence in 1950s France. After having his first sexual experience with a prostitute and dodging the lips of a priest, Chevalier contracts a case of scarlet fever. When the fever leaves him with a heart murmur, Chevalier is placed in a sanatorium, along with his over-attentive and adulterous mother.
Pretty Baby · 1978Pretty Baby
★ 7.01978
MovieDrama
In 1917 New Orleans, a 12-year-old girl is raised in a brothel by her prostitute mother.
May Fools · 1990May Fools
★ 6.91990
MovieComedyDrama
During the events of May 1968 in France, different worldviews of conflicting relatives collide in their family estate.
Atlantic City · 1980Atlantic City
★ 6.81980
MovieCrimeDrama
In a corrupt city, a small-time gangster and the estranged wife of a pot dealer find themselves thrown together in an escapade of love, money, drugs and danger.
Vanya on 42nd Street · 1994Vanya on 42nd Street
★ 6.61994
MovieDrama
An uninterrupted rehearsal of Chekhov's 'Uncle Vanya' plays out by a company of actors. The setting: their run-down theater with an unusable stage and crumbling ceiling. The play is shown act by act with the briefest of breaks to move props or for refreshments. The lack of costumes, real props and scenery is soon forgotten.
The Lovers · 1958The Lovers
★ 6.61958
MovieRomanceDrama
A shallow, provincial wife finds her relationship with her preoccupied husband strained by romantic notions, leading her further towards Paris and the country wilderness.
Young Törless · 1966Young Törless
★ 6.61966
MovieDrama
At an Austrian boys' boarding school in the early 1900s, shy, intelligent Törless observes the sadistic behavior of his fellow students, doing nothing to help a victimized classmate—until the torture goes too far. Adapted from Robert Musil's acclaimed novel, Young Törless launched the New German Cinema movement and garnered the 1966 Cannes Film Festival International Critics' Prize for first-time director Volker Schlöndorff.
Damage · 1992Damage
★ 6.61992
MovieDramaRomance
The life of a respected British politician at the height of his career crumbles when he becomes obsessed with his son's lover.
Zazie dans le Métro · 1960Zazie dans le Métro
★ 6.61960
MovieComedyFantasy
A brash and precocious ten-year-old comes to Paris for a whirlwind weekend with her rakish uncle.
The Silent World · 1956The Silent World
★ 6.51956
MovieDocumentaryAdventure
Join renowned explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau as he investigates aquatic habitats worldwide, showcasing whales, sharks, and diverse marine life. The film highlights the brutal realities of nature while capturing the wonder of underwater exploration, as the team ventures into previously unseen ocean depths.
More Like This
The Man Who Loved Women · 1977The Man Who Loved Women
★ 7.11977
MovieDramaComedy
At Bertrand Morane's burial there are many of the women that the 40-year-old engineer loved. In flashback Bertrand's life and love affairs are told by himself while writing an autobiographical novel.
Russian Dolls · 2005Russian Dolls
★ 6.62005
MovieComedyDrama
Five years after their summer together in Barcelona, Xavier, William, Wendy, Martine and Isabelle reunite.
The Secret · 2000The Secret
★ 7.22000
MovieRomanceDrama
Marie, who works as a successful door-to-door encyclopedia salesperson, has been married to her husband Francois for 12 years and has a two-year-old son. Though she is relatively content with her life, she feels something is wanting. Enter 50-year old African-American Bill. Initially she is annoyed by his insouciance, but she finds that she is irresistibly attracted to him. Soon the two are in the midst of sordid illicit affair. She knows little about her new lover, and he seems uninterested in learning about her, but the long sessions of lovemaking are something else entirely. Feeling out of control, Marie is increasingly repelled by her own actions. Psychologically, she struggles to reconcile her torrid encounters with Bill and mundane domestic chores such as bathing her son. Moreover, she finds herself incapable of hiding her adulterous behavior, rather she comes home with scratches and hickeys all over her body, to the devastation Francois.
The Long Goodbye · 1973The Long Goodbye
★ 7.41973
MovieMysteryDrama
In 1970s Hollywood, Detective Philip Marlowe tries to help a friend who is accused of murdering his wife.
Me and My Sister · 2004Me and My Sister
★ 5.62004
MovieDramaComedy
Louise, who has just written a novel, comes to Paris to meet with a potential publisher. While in the city, she stays with her older sister, Martine, who in many ways is the exact opposite of Louise: she lives in a fashionable neighborhood, is cold to others, and has snobby friends, while Louise lives in a small town and is thoroughly unpretentious. Louise's apparent happiness -- and similarities to their mother -- gradually gets on Martine's nerves.
The Beat That My Heart Skipped · 2005The Beat That My Heart Skipped
★ 6.92005
MovieDramaCrime
A ruthless real estate agent discovers a passion for piano and auditions with help from a young virtuoso, but the pressures of his corrupt career threaten to derail his musical aspirations.
The Spanish Apartment · 2002The Spanish Apartment
★ 7.12002
MovieDramaComedy
A strait-laced French student moves into an apartment in Barcelona with a cast of six other characters from all over Europe. Together, they speak the international language of love and friendship.
The Piano Teacher · 2001The Piano Teacher
★ 7.32001
MovieDramaRomance
Erika Kohut, a sexually repressed piano teacher living with her domineering mother, meets a young man who starts romantically pursuing her.
La Chinoise · 1967La Chinoise
★ 6.91967
MovieDramaComedy
A small group of French students are studying Mao, trying to find out their position in the world and how to change the world to a Maoistic community using terrorism.
Elevator to the Gallows · 1958Elevator to the Gallows
★ 7.61958
MovieCrimeDrama
A self-assured businessman murders his employer, husband of his mistress, which unintentionally provokes an ill-fated chain of events.
Street Kings · 2008Street Kings
★ 6.72008
MovieActionCrime
Tom Ludlow is a disillusioned L.A. Police Officer, rarely playing by the rules and haunted by the death of his wife. When evidence implicates him in the execution of a fellow officer, he is forced to go up against the cop culture he's been a part of his entire career, ultimately leading him to question the loyalties of everyone around him.
Lonely Hearts · 2006Lonely Hearts
★ 6.12006
MovieDramaThriller
In the late 1940s, a murderous couple known as the 'The Lonely Hearts Killers' kills close to a dozen people. Two detectives try to nab the duo who find their targets via the personals in the paper.
The Dreamers · 2003The Dreamers
★ 7.22003
MovieDramaRomance
When Isabelle and Theo invite Matthew to stay with them, what begins as a casual friendship ripens into a sensual voyage of discovery and desire in which nothing is off limits and everything is possible.
Vivre Sa Vie · 1962Vivre Sa Vie
★ 7.71962
MovieDrama
Twelve episodic tales in the life of a Parisian woman and her slow descent into prostitution.
Last Tango in Paris · 1972Last Tango in Paris
★ 6.91972
MovieDramaRomance
A recently widowed American begins an anonymous sexual relationship with a young Parisian woman.
Jules and Jim · 1962Jules and Jim
★ 7.51962
MovieDramaRomance
In the carefree days before World War I, introverted Austrian author Jules strikes up a friendship with the exuberant Frenchman Jim and both men fall for the impulsive and beautiful Catherine.
The Soft Skin · 1964The Soft Skin
★ 7.11964
MovieDramaRomance
Pierre Lachenay is a well-known publisher and lecturer, married to Franca and father of Sabine. He starts a love affair with air hostess Nicole, which Pierre is hiding, but he cannot stay away from her.
Quills · 2000Quills
★ 7.22000
MovieDrama
In early 19th-century France, the Marquis de Sade is confined to an asylum where his forbidden writings continue to circulate beyond its walls. As the authorities tighten control, a clash unfolds between the Marquis’ unyielding imagination, the reformist ideals of the Abbé in charge, and the repressive measures of a doctor sent to silence him. Desire, power, and censorship collide in a battle over freedom of expression.
