Samuel will star in  'Fury' the next movie of Karim Dridi. This will be the story of an ex-boxer turned mechanic who falls in love with a young Chinese woman in the 13th district of Paris. They will encounter the prejudices from both sides of the community (think 'Jungle Fever'). Shooting is scheduled from May to June, 2002.

-- Samuel has been attached to this movie since early 2000. I found a casting call notice for a female lead from March 2000 and he was already signed.

 

 

Samuel originally had no less than three (!) movies set for release in April 2002. Now, we all know how many times American films change their release dates according to the competition, weather, and cycles of the Moon... I am expecting the same to be true with these movies. Although a month of Samuel could be quite tolerable.

 

The first movie on the platter is 'À La Folie, Pas Du Tout'. I can't get a good translation but 'With All the Madness' is my guess. It is a romance with Samuel and Audrey Tautou. Audrey is the adorable young lady that made 'Amelie' such a treat to watch. She and Samuel also co-starred together in the 1999 hit 'Venus Beauty Institute'.  From what I have read the story involves Audrey's character falling in love with Samuel's character who is a married cardiologist with a child on the way. Hopefully this one will make it to some of the American art houses so we can see another Samuel movie on the American big screen. I have added a link to the trailer to the Links and on the Home Page. It looks pretty good, very stylish with a dark twist. This one is scheduled for release on March 27, 2002. The original release date was April 3, 2002.

 

The next one is 'Trois Zeros' (Three Zeros - even I could translate that one). This is a movie featuring soccer (that would be football for the rest of the globe). From the director of 'Jet Set'. This movie is about three 'losers' who become involved (and re-involved) with the soccer business. I am not certain which role Samuel will play since I can't find his name attached to a character. The story is: Two men are prison cellmates. The day before they are released they decide to make a pact. One is a soccer whiz and goes on to become a star with his friend being his agent. They convince a retired soccer star to come back to the sport. This film was originally set for release on April 24, 2002, but it was pushed back to June to coincide release with the World Cup.

 

The next movie is 'Une Affaire Privee' (A Private Business). Samuel is seventh down on the cast list, so I do not know how large a role he has in this one. The plot is: A policeman is investigating a disappearance and quickly runs into problems with ends up interfering with his own life while meeting colorful characters along the way. Currently set for release on April 30, 2002.

 

 

'Blanche' with Gerard Depardieu & Samuel is currently set for release on September 18, 2002. It began filming in September, 2001 and should be in post-production. The story is: 

In the 17th century, Blanche De Perronne (Lou Doillon), fourteen, is witness to the murder of her parents by the captain of the death squad of the Mazarin Cardinal. Fifteen years later, Blanche how grown to be a beautiful woman. She and her misfit friends seek revenge for her parents death. She meets "The Foreigner" (Samuel Le Bihan), a solitary mercenary, who proposes an attack on the Cardinal's convoy. The ambush succeeds and the group discovers two invaluable goods very coveted by its Eminence: a nefarious substance, called "powder of the Devil " and a coded letter that only Bonange, a spy on the payroll of Mazarin, is able to decipher.

The Cardinal will stop at nothing to secure the return of his substance and of the famous letter, leaving Blanche and The Foreigner in harm's way...

 

 

 Currently floating around in 'To Be Released Land' is 'La Mentale' (The Mental One). I don't know whether this is referencing a smart one or a crazy one. I am assuming from the cast listing that Samuel has the title role in this. After spending four years behind bars, the protagonist is coming home to the suburbs. However, he still has friends in the crime world who want his help. This co-stars Clotilde Courau who was also in 'Une Affaire Privee'.  This film was dated for release in 2001 but will hopefully be out in the next few months.