Claire Maurier, who played the owner of the café in the film “Amélie” by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, passed away on Sunday, May 3rd. She was 97 years old.
Born Odette Agramon in 1929 in Céret (Pyrénées-Orientales), she adopted the stage name Claire Maurier and began a career in theater in the early 1950s while also working in television. She landed small roles in cinema, including in Édouard Molinaro’s first film “Le Dos au mur” in 1957, a director with whom she would collaborate on several feature films.
Her career took off in 1959 thanks to her role as Jean-Pierre Léaud’s mother in François Truffaut’s “The 400 Blows,” one of the most iconic films of the French New Wave. In 1963, she starred alongside Fernandel and Bourvil in “La cuisine au beurre,” a phenomenal success of French cinema in the early 1960s.
Her career slowed down but in the late 1970s, she reunited with Édouard Molinaro for another triumph with “La Cage aux folles”. This comedy released in 1978, based on a theater piece, was a hit even internationally, including in the United States.
An award nomination at the César Awards in 1981
In 1981, she received a nomination for the César Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance in Claude Sautet’s “Un mauvais fils,” alongside Patrick Dewaere and Brigitte Fossey.
She later faded from the big screen and focused on theater. She notably starred in “Un air de famille,” a play written by Agnès Jaoui and Jean-Pierre Bacri. In 1996, she reprised her role as a toxic mother in the family reunions held in her son’s bar in the adaptation of the play by Cédric Klapisch.
In 2001, she appeared in another cult film, “Le Fabuleux destin d’Amélie Poulain,” directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. She portrayed a former equestrian dancer turned café owner in Montmartre who employs Amélie Poulain.
One of her last film roles was in 2010, playing Gérard Depardieu’s mother in Jean Becker’s “La Tête en friche.” She was married to actor Jean-Renaud Garcia.
