Henri Decaë
- Known for
- Camera
- Born
- July 31, 1915
- Died
- March 7, 1987 (aged 71)
- Birthplace
- Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, France
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Henri Decaë (31 July 1915 – 7 March 1987) gained fame as a cinematographer entering the film industry as a sound engineer and sound editor. He was a photojournalist in the French army during World War II. After the war he began making documentary shorts, directing and photographing industrial and commercial films. In 1947 he made his first feature film. Decaë is strongly associated with directors who strongly influenced, or were part of, the French New Wave. These include Jean-Pierre Melville, Louis Malle and Claude Chabrol. Decaë first worked as a cinematographer with Melville on Le Silence de la Mer (1949). Decaë also edited and mixed the sound. Although Decaë worked with Melville on Les enfants terribles, which as Williams commented (1992, p333) "...the work is more accurately to be viewed as a stunning demonstration of the cinematic possibilities of faithful literary adaptation in the hands of a gifted director", according to Marie (p 88) it was his distinctive camera work on Bob le flambeur which caught the attention of the Cahiers critics. Malle hired him for his first two features and Chabrol for his first three features. They had been lucky as Decaë was finding it hard to get work at that time as he was being informally shunned by many after participating in a critical film about the Korean War. By the time Decaë worked for François Truffaut on The 400 Blows he came with a reputation, which meant that he was the highest-paid person on the film. Decaë's liking for natural light, his ability to work at speed as well as his excellent photographic sensibility led to him working with René Clément on several features beginning with Plein soleil (1960). It was Decaë "...who liberated the camera, from its fixed tripod. He made the New Wave possible, backing up Melville, Malle, Chabrol and Truffaut." (Marie, 2003 p 89)
Known For
Filmography
The Vengeance of the Winged Serpent
Movie · Director of Photography
Exposed
Movie · Director of Photography
My Other Husband
Movie · Director of Photography
The Professional
Movie · Director of Photography
The Island
Movie · Director of Photography
Le Guignolo
Movie · Director of Photography
Inspector Blunder
Movie · Director of Photography
The Hard Way
Movie · Director of Photography
Umbrella Coup
Movie · Director of Photography
Cop or Hood
Movie · Director of Photography
An Almost Perfect Affair
Movie · Director of Photography
The Boys from Brazil
Movie · Director of Photography
These Sorcerers Are Mad
Movie · Director of Photography
Bobby Deerfield
Movie · Director of Photography
Death of a Corrupt Man
Movie · Director of Photography
Seven Nights in Japan
Movie · Director of Photography
The Wild Goose Chase
Movie · Director of Photography
I'm Losing My Temper
Movie · Director of Photography
The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacob
Movie · Director of Photography
Don Juan or If Don Juan Were a Woman
Movie · Director of Photography
Two People
Movie · Director of Photography
The Right to Love
Movie · Director of Photography
Jo
Movie · Director of Photography
The Light at the Edge of the World
Movie · Director of Photography
Delusions of Grandeur
Movie · Director of Photography
Hello-Goodbye
Movie · Director of Photography
Le Cercle Rouge
Movie · Director of Photography
The Only Game in Town
Movie · Director of Photography
The Sicilian Clan
Movie · Director of Photography
Castle Keep
Movie · Director of Photography
D-Day Revisited
Movie · Director of Photography
Le Samouraï
Movie · Director of Photography
The Night of the Generals
Movie · Director of Photography
The Comedians
Movie · Director of Photography
Diabolically Yours
Movie · Director of Photography
The Thief of Paris
Movie · Director of Photography
Hotel Paradiso
Movie · Director of Photography
The Sucker
Movie · Director of Photography
Viva Maria!
Movie · Director of Photography
The Black Tulip
Movie · Director of Photography
Joy House
Movie · Director of Photography
Weekend at Dunkirk
Movie · Director of Photography
Circle of Love
Movie · Director of Photography
The Day and the Hour
Movie · Director of Photography
Magnet of Doom
Movie · Director of Photography
Sweet and Sour
Movie · Director of Photography
A Very Private Affair
Movie · Director of Photography
Lust
Movie · Director of Photography
The Seven Deadly Sins
Movie · Director of Photography
Pride
Movie · Director of Photography
Eva
Movie · Director of Photography
La Paresse
Movie · Director of Photography
Sundays and Cybele
Movie · Director of Photography
Léon Morin, Priest
Movie · Director of Photography
The Joy of Living
Movie · Director of Photography
Purple Noon
Movie · Director of Photography
Les Bonnes Femmes
Movie · Director of Photography
The 400 Blows
Movie · Director of Photography
The Cousins
Movie · Director of Photography
Le Beau Serge
Movie · Director of Photography
Witness in the City
Movie · Director of Photography
The Verdict
Movie · Camera Operator
À double tour
Movie · Director of Photography
Elevator to the Gallows
Movie · Director of Photography
The Lovers
Movie · Director of Photography
S.O.S. Noronha
Movie · Director of Photography
Bob le Flambeur
Movie · Director of Photography
Le masque de Toutankhamon
Movie · Director of Photography
Heartbreak Ridge
Movie · Director of Photography
Heart of the Casbah
Movie · Director of Photography
Faits d'hiver
Movie · Director of Photography
The Strange Ones
Movie · Director of Photography
The Silence of the Sea
Movie · Director of Photography