Jean-Louis Bory

Jean-Louis Bory , born the June 25th 1919 with Méréville (the Essonne, at the time Seine-et-Oise) and deceased the June 12th 1979, was a writer, journalist and critical cinematographic French.

Biography

Wire of a pharmacist and a teacher, it is resulting from a medium of teachers. With an atheistic father and a mother not practicing, it is marked little by the religion. On the other hand, it is it by the Popular front. Brilliance raises with the college of Étampes, it enters in khâgne to Henri-Iv. Stuck to the entrance examination of the National university in 1939, it is called up for the military service. From return to the Latin Quarter in October 1942, it obtains the Agrégation of letters in July 1945. Two months later, its first novel ( My village at the German hour ) is published at Flammarion and takes down the Prix Goncourt with the support of Colette. While itself is affected in Haguenau in the Low-Rhine, its book receives an exceptional reception of the public (500 000 specimens). It is not the same following ( Dear Aglée , 1947). But in 1948, it is transferred in Paris region and can collaborate in the Gazette of the Letters with Robert Kanters, Paul Guth and François Mauriac.

Politically, it belongs then to this generation disillusioned by the fact that there no was movement “of Resistance to the Revolution”. He is even requested by Aragon to adhere to PCF. But he prefers to limit himself to adhesion with associations crypto-communists like the Mouvement of Peace, the National council of the writers or the Association the France-USSR. Named with the Voltaire college in 1950, it begins in journalism as from 1952 by platforms in Saturday evening . But in 1955, it chooses to follow his friend François Erval to the literary service of the Express train, speaking pipe of a mendesism to which it is increasingly sensitive.

Moreover, in 1956, it breaks with the Communists about the Soviet intervention in Budapest against which it signs a petition with Edgar Morin, Gilles Martinet, Jean-Marie Domenach and Georges Suffert ( France Observer , November 8th, 1956). He also resigns of the Committee of honor of France-USSR association. That does not prevent it from posting its positions third-mondistes and anticolonialists. Thus, when in 1960, its editor Rene Julliard proposes to him to sign the Manifeste of the 121, he does not hesitate and finds himself suspended post of professor which he occupies with the Lycée Henri-Iv since 1957. He is reinstated at the end of a few months, but this event marks a rupture in his relationship with teaching. It integrates in particular this year the editorial board of the Cahiers of the seasons , re-examined where it publishes short literary texts. And in 1961, it replaces François Truffaut like cinematographic criticism with Arts . The following year, it thus ceases teaching and its collaboration with the Gazette of the Letters to devote itself only to journalism and the literature. It however does not start again its literary career with the Odor of the grass (Julliard, 1962). But its entry with the emission the Mask and the Feather in 1964 ensures an audience to him which contributes to its success of criticism. At the end of 1964, it must however cease its collaboration with the Express train by fidelity with François Erval. As of January 1965, Guy Dumur then offers to him to continue his literary criticisms with the Nouvel Observateur . If it feels there “politically in family”, it distinguishes its political friendships from its literary affinities. Thus, he rehabilitated Céline before binding friendship with Paul Morand and Jacques Chardonne. And groups it (François Nourissier, Herve Bazin, Jean d' Ormesson, Georges Suffert, Louis Pauwels) that it joins together in Méréville into 1964/1965 is marked on the right. Its spectrum of friendships is thus very broad but of anything its engagement does not attenuate as it shows it as from November 1966 within the cinematographic chronicles which it ensures Obs in the place of Michel Cournot. Ceasing then its collaboration with Arts , it is essential like the critic cinema of the newspaper even if it is not very present there. Famous for the tournaments which oppose it to Georges Charensol to the Masque and the feather , it defends in particular the cinema of the third world, particularly African and Arab. It also seems most influential of the critics of the Art circuit and Test of the Latin Quarter. But its heat is even sharper in May 68 where it is one of leaders who make stop the Cannes festival of which he had been member of the jury the previous year. That will not prevent it from being member of its commission of selection of 1970 to 1973 nor to be more assiduous with the festival of the La Rochelle. To the Nouvel Observateur , it only passes to deposit its article.

It does not intervene in the choices of the newspaper which it finds debatable politically. But he telephones regularly Jean Daniel to deliver his opinion to him on a leading article. He pleads thus for the Palestinian cause which he does not find not defended enough. It defends as for him films of aspect avant-gardist or scandalous which attempt to call in question the company, its institutions and its values traditional. Beside explicitly political films that it supports apart from all artistic considerations, it defends a cinema whose aspect protestor is due less to the subject than with the subversion of the traditional cinematographic language. Godard, Robbe-Grillet, Resnais, Pasolini, Lasted or the Frères Taviani are scenario writers who hold to him in heart. Defender of an “alternative” culture, it shows himself often aggressive with regard to films of boulevard, distraction or with large distribution which call into question neither the taboos of morals and the social life, nor the practices to see and think. Its contempt for the cinema of Michel Audiard, Bourvil or Louis de Funès, which he considers middle-class and franchouillard, has equal only that for films which, like those of Henri Verneuil - exciting according to him of the middle-class values, of money and ambition - or of Claude Lelouch - putting in scene socially “made” characters - representations convey legitimating in its eyes the line.

But if this freedom enables him to devote its “chronicle to a film that will be seen only by the author and by”, it justifies in its eyes very scanty wages which he regards as guarantees it surest of the latter. Because the direction regrets to see it systematically being unaware of films with large budget and general public and exerts on him a soft pressure by causing a competitor less militant. But it is not really worried and refuses into 1972 to answer the cordial invitation of François Nourissier with the Point . On the contrary, it makes enter Michel Grisolia to help it to write the small notes that one claims to him on films.

The Années 1970 are marked by its fight for homosexual the. This one shows through in its autobiographical works ( the Skin of the zebras , 1969; All born from a woman , 1976) but especially in My Half of Orange (1973), success (50 000 specimens) in which it announces its homosexuality publicly. It then posts in homosexual association Arcadie, making with its first conference an intervention of most resounding. It militates then in its scission gauchist, the F.H.A.R., of which one of the members, Guy Hocquenghem, written with him Comment do call us already you? . It finishes with the Homosexual Groupe of Release, always defending the heavy traditional interdicts on most proletarian and most marginal.

Parallel to this combat, it publishes several tests devoted to the novel popular - such as Eugene Sue, dandy and socialist (1973) - and a historical test ( the revolution of Glorious July or Three , 1972). But it is the Foot (1976) which is its principal success (more than 100.000 specimens) of the period. In this whimsical novel, he abuses certain figures of intelligentsia like Simone de Beauvoir and Michel Foucault. Falling in depression in August 1977, it réémerge only during one period of remission (October 1978 - February 1979) which offers the occasion to him to publish one amusing portrait of Cambacérès (1978). It commits suicide during the night of the June 12th 1979.

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