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La Marseillaise (1938)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
17 April 1938 (Finland) morePlot:
A news-reel like movie about early part of the Frensh Revolution, shown from the eyes of individual people... more | add synopsisPlot Keywords:
User Comments:
The Country is in Danger! more (6 total)Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Pierre Renoir | ... | Le Roi de France Louis XVI | |
| Lise Delamare | ... | La Reine Marie-Antoinette (as Lise Delamare de la Comédie Française) | |
| Léon Larive | ... | Picard, le valet du roi | |
| William Aguet | ... | La Rochefoucauld | |
| Elisa Ruis | ... | La princesse de Lamballe | |
| Germaine Lefébure | ... | Madame Élisabeth, soeur du roi (as G. Lefebure) | |
| Louis Jouvet | ... | Roederer | |
| Georges Spanelly | ... | La Chesnaye (as Spanelly) | |
| Jaque Catelain | ... | Le capitaine Langlade | |
| Pierre Nay | ... | Dubouchage | |
| Edmond Castel | ... | Leroux (as Castel) | |
| Aimé Clariond | ... | Monsieur de Saint Laurent (as Aimé Clariond de la Comédie Française) | |
| André Zibral | ... | Monsieur de Saint Merri (as Zibral) | |
| Jean Aymé | ... | Monsieur de Fauguerolles (as Jean Ayme) | |
| Irène Joachim | ... | Madame de Saint Laurent |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
La Marseillaise (USA)La Marseillaise - Chronique de quelques faits ayant contribué à la chute de la monarchie (France) (long title)
The Marseillaise (UK)
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Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parentsRuntime:
135 min | USA:130 minCountry:
FranceLanguage:
FrenchColor:
Black and WhiteAspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 moreSound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Sound System)Certification:
Finland:K-16Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Shot at the time of the Popular Front, the credits actually mentions the fact that all members of the technical cast belongs to the French left-wing trade union 'Confédération Générale du Travail' (CGT). moreMovie Connections:
Featured in Jean Renoir: Part One - From La Belle Époque to World War II (1993) (TV) moreSoundtrack:
Musique ancienne moreFAQ
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This film, despite being directed by Renoir, is largely forgotten today. This is a pity, as there are few films actually about the French Revolution (though it is used as a backdrop for a variety of plot lines), and none that really deal with the birth of the Republic.
It was made at the tail end of the 'Popular Front' government, a coalition of parties (including the communists) formed to protect the Third Republic from right-wing domestic subversion and the baleful influence of the Nazis.
It chose to use the early years of the revolution as a metaphor for this political situation - France was still a (constitutional) monarchy, and the King possessed the power of a constitutional veto. The Queen and her circle were said to be plotting a counter revolution.
Within this context, each city and region of France is requested to send a Battalion to Paris, to defend the government against its domestic enemies. We follow the adventures of some of the ordinary men in the battalion from Marseilles (who sing a new song called the "Marseilles" as they march. We see their experiences in Paris (including a love interest), and their simple and honest defence of what they believe in. Finally, they participate in the coup that leads to the establishment of the Republic and the arrest of the King.
The film is episodic, and some of the scenes are a little melodramatic. But the characterisation is excellent. The King and his court are not one-dimensional villains. The scene of his departure is quite moving.
In short, a film well worth rescuing from obscurity.