PARIS 鈥� French filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier, who directed acclaimed movies such 鈥淎 Sunday in the Country,鈥� 鈥淐aptain Conan鈥� and 鈥淭he Judge and the Assassin,鈥� has died, according to his family. He was 79.
Tavernier's wife and children said he Thursday that he died in Sainte-Maxime, located in France's southerly Var region. Along with his family, the Lyon-born director left behind a legacy of 30 films that included performances by stars of French cinema such as Romy Schneider, Isabelle Huppert and Dirk Bogarde.
Tributes for Tavernier and his work came from far and wide. Former French Interior Minister Gerard Collomb said Tavernier's films "will remain masterpieces of French cinema.鈥�
Born April 25, 1941, Tavernier wore various caps during his career in cinema. He worked as an assistant director, press officer and critic before he began his turn at directing. It proved to be the decision of his life.
He first found success with 1974鈥檚 鈥淭he Watchmaker of St. Paul,鈥� and 1976's 鈥淭he Judge and the Assassin鈥� won two C茅sar Awards, France鈥檚 equivalent of the Oscars. The 1990 movie 鈥淒addy Nostalgia鈥� was famous for being Bogarde鈥檚 final screen role.
Although Tavernier was less well-known in the English-speaking world, his 1987 feature film about a fictional jazz musician, 鈥淩ound Midnight,鈥� won Herbie Hancock an Oscar for best original score.
Tavernier was married to the late French-Irish screenwriter Claudine O鈥橦agan, better known as Colo Tavernier, from 1965 to 1980. They had two children together: writer Tiffany Tavernier and director and actor Nils Tavernier.
Colo Tavernier wrote the screenplay for several of her husband鈥檚 and won the C茅sar for best adaptation for 鈥淎 Sunday in the Country鈥� in 1985.
The Associated Press
