Le Beau Serge

Le Beau Serge is a 1958 French drama film and the feature directing debut of Claude Chabrol, who also wrote the screenplay. Frequently cited as one of the first products of the French New Wave, it is often compared with Chabrol's follow-up film Les Cousins, which likewise pairs Gérard Blain and Jean-Claude Brialy in the leading roles.

The story follows young François who, after recovering from an illness, returns to his native village and finds his old friend Serge has become a bitter, hard-drinking man who has abandoned his former ambitions. Determined to help him, François confronts the closed and troubled world of rural life. The film won the Best Director prize at the 1958 Locarno Film Festival as well as the Jean Vigo Prize, and critics found it remarkably assured for a first work.