Hélène Vincent, Christine Pignet, Maurice Mons… What happens to the actors of Life is a long quiet river?

It’s a cult film that rocked a whole generation. In the 1980s, Etienne Chatiliez enjoyed incredible success with Life is a Long Quiet River, chronicling the lives of two families, the Le Quesnoys and the Groseilles, whose two children were exchanged. With this feature film, which launched the career of Benoît Magimel, the director who was then signing his very first film at the cinema, wanted to avoid the stars as much as possible. To embody the Le Quesnoy couple, he chose André Wilms and Hélène Vincent. The actor, who was best known for his collaboration with Aki Kaurismäki, died last February at the age of 74. Like him, Hélène Vincent has had a long career in the cinema since her filmography has nearly fifty films.

A productive actress, she has also acted extensively on television and in the theater. For the Currants, Etienne Chatilley trusted Christine Pignet and Maurice Mons. After her role in Life is a Long Quiet River, the actress continued to shoot, notably for Michel Blanc, Tony Gatlif or Bertrand Tavernier. The last time viewers were able to see her was in 2018 in Les Parcs de Charlotte Dauphin. Like the other actors in this cult film, it was rather in the theater that she pursued her career, just like her fictional husband. Maurice Mons, too, has walked the boards many times. In the supporting roles of Life is a Long Quiet River, we find faces that are well known today. Like that of Catherine Hiegel.

Life is a Long Quiet River: A Critical Success

A successful actress, she recently made headlines by publicly supporting her daughter, Coline Berry, who accused her father of incest. In addition to launching the prolific and successful career of Benoît Magimel, Life is a long quiet river has been hailed by critics. With 4 million cumulative admissions during its theatrical release, this feature film has accumulated 7 César nominations. Finally, the film won 4 statuettes: best first work, best female supporting role for Hélène Vincent, best screenplay, and best female hope for Catherine Jacob. The feature film was also nominated in the categories best costumes, best film, and best supporting actor for Patrick Bouchitey.