Henri Colpi (French: [kɔlpi]; 15 July 1921 – 14 January 2006) was a French film editor and film director. Colpi graduated from the IDHEC in 1947. During 1950 to 1960, he edited films for such notable French New Wave directors as Agnès Varda and Georges Franju. Colpi directed the 1961 film Une aussi longue absence, which is well known for sharing the Palme d'Or at the 1961 Cannes Film Festival with Viridiana, directed by Luis Buñuel. Une aussi longue absence was written by Marguerite Duras, featured Alida Valli in a major role, and included music by Georges Delerue. It also won the Louis Delluc Prize in 1960. His second feature Codine was also screening in competition at the 1963 Cannes Film Festival, where Colpi won the prize for Best Screenplay. Colpi is also noted as a film editor with about 20 credits, including Alain Resnais' films Hiroshima mon amour (1959) and L'Année dernière à Marienbad (1961). He edited André Antoine's forgotten film L'Hirondelle et la Mésange (The Swallow and the Titmouse) to a 79-minute feature that premiered in 1984. Antoine initially shot six hours of footage. In addition to directing, editing, acting, sound recording, and a variety of functions in the post-War years, he was featured in a French television series, L'Histoire du cinéma français par ceux qui l'ont fait (The History of French Cinema By Those Who Made It) in 1974, and he continued to work into the 1990s.
Read moreShow less
Biography from TMDB.
- July 15, 1921
- January 14, 2006 (aged 84)
- Brig, Valais, Switzerland
- Editor, director and writer
- 8 on MovieCove · 36 credits in all
What are Henri Colpi's films like?
Across their 6 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Ideas.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 6
Light 1 · Serious 0 · Dark 5
Grounded 0 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 4
Gentle 1 · Charged 3 · Intense 2
Steady 3 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 0
Slow burn 6 · Even-paced 0 · Relentless 0
Casual 0 · Engaged 2 · Full focus 4
A split, not a type: Easy watch 1 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 3
Resolved 0 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 6
Moods and endings
- Bittersweet2
- Ambiguous3
- Cyclical1
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Henri Colpi's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 7 of their 8 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on The Criterion Channel (4).
Subscription and free streaming for Henri Colpi's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
36 credits, 8 with a MovieCove page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.
Life Lesson (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1995)
The Elegant Criminal (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1990)
The Sacrifice(1986)
Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films
Le sphinx (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1986)
The Big Brother (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)
Fruits of Passion(1981)
Midcredits score: 28th percentile of all filmsThe Cousteau Odyssey: The Nile Part 2 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)
Bilitis (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)
Le Pèlerinage (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)
Mysterious Island (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)
The Mysterious Island (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)
Rafael Kubelik A Portrait (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)
Noële aux quatre vents (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)
Happy He Who Like Ulysses (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)
Destroy, She Said (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)
Fortune (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)
Thibaud ou les Croisades (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)
Symphonie Nr. 3 Es-Dur opus 55 (Eroica) von Ludwig van Beethoven (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)
The Nameless Star (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)
Entwürfe und Träume (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)
Codine (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)
Last Year at Marienbad(1961)
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films
The Long Absence(1961)
Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all filmsParis la belle (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)
Hiroshima Mon Amour(1959)
Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films
Monsieur Tête (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1959)
Along the Coast (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1958)
The First Night (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1958)
Les hommes de la baleine (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1958)
The Sea and the Days (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1958)
A King in New York(1957)
Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all filmsChères vieilles choses (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1957)
La Déroute (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1957)
Night and Fog(1956)
Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films
The Mystery of Picasso(1956)
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films
Bilocation (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 36 titles, 35 of them dated from 1956 to 1995.
How do Henri Colpi's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 93rd percentile, the median of all 8; across their 6 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 93rd percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up7
- 25th to 49th1
Shape of the crowd
None of their 8 titles divides audiences: 5 are Universally Loved.
- Universally Loved5
- Crowd Pleaser2
- Mixed1
Reviewers score the pacing 38/100 in their films, across 6 reviewed titles; fans 47, detractors 17. The element that speaks to their work as an editor.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Henri Colpi's work okay for kids?
Across a limited sample of up to 4 MovieCove titles with content scores.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.
Who does Henri Colpi work with?
People who share at least 2 of Henri Colpi's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Jasmine Chasney shares the most, 3.
Directors
- Alain ResnaisShared titles: Last Year at Marienbad (1961), Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)See all 2 shared titles with Alain Resnais
Writers
- Marguerite DurasShared titles: The Long Absence (1961), Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)See all 2 shared titles with Marguerite Duras
Actors
- Georges WilsonShared titles: Fruits of Passion (1981), The Long Absence (1961)See all 2 shared titles with Georges Wilson
- Pierre BarbaudShared titles: Last Year at Marienbad (1961), Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)See all 2 shared titles with Pierre Barbaud
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Jasmine ChasneyShared titles: Last Year at Marienbad (1961), The Long Absence (1961), Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)See all 3 shared titles with Jasmine Chasney
- Georges DelerueShared titles: The Long Absence (1961), Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)See all 2 shared titles with Georges Delerue
- Sacha ViernyShared titles: Last Year at Marienbad (1961), Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)See all 2 shared titles with Sacha Vierny
Producers
- Anatole DaumanShared titles: Fruits of Passion (1981), Last Year at Marienbad (1961), Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)See all 3 shared titles with Anatole Dauman
