Tributes have poured in for the 'Watchmaker of St. Paul' helmer as he has passed away at the age of 79 following deteriorating health amid struggle with a lengthy illness.
- March 26, 2021
AceShowbiz - French filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier has died, aged 79.
The "A Sunday in the Country" and "Round Midnight" director passed away this week (beg22Mar21) after a lengthy illness.
A spokesman for France's Lumiere Institute in Lyon, of which Tavernier was president, confirmed the sad news on Thursday (25Mar21).
A cause of death has not yet been confirmed.
Filmmaker Claude Lelouch was among the first to pay tribute to his friend, calling Tavernier's passing "a colossal loss for French cinema."
Born in Lyon, Tavernier was a law student who wrote film reviews and books about movies before he became a director. He enjoyed success with his very first film behind the camera, "The Watchmaker of St. Paul", in 1974.
His hits also included "Revenge of the Musketeers", "These Foolish Things", "Life and Nothing But", and "Beatrice".
His last credit was the 2017 docu-series "Journeys Through French Cinema".
Former Cannes Film Festival President Gilles Jacob tweeted in the wake of Bertrand Tavernier's passing, "French cinema is mourning. The filmmaker, the cinephile, the memory, all contributed to the exercise of an art to which he dedicated his life. He will no longer tell us his stories with that powerful force of conviction that made him such a precious auteur."
He added, "I have the memory of a beast of cinema, to see it, to make it, to talk about it, to defend it with contemporary subjects allowing the exercise of a humanistic temperament, memorable ideas and communicative humor. When we can satisfy our passion to such point, we can say we have had a good life."
