| | |
Features: DVD
Set in the theater district of early 19th-century paris,children of paradise re-creates a glittering world of backstagelife. Four men-to mime debureau, the ambitious actor lemaitre,the nihilistic villain lacenaire, and the snobbish aristocratmonteray pursue their love for garance.
"A timeless masterpiece of filmmaking...wise, witty and completely captivating." Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video Guide
"Lushly romantic...a sumptuous epic about the relations between theater and life." The New Yorker
"A peak of thespian artistry." Variety Movie Guide
"Memorable, passionate, stunning!" The New York Times
Editor's Note
Filmed during the German occupation, this French milestone centers around the theatrical life of a beautiful courtesan and the four men who love her. Voted the "Best French Film in History" by the French Film Academy in 1990. Academy Award Nominations: Best Original Screenplay.
Plot Summary
A romantic epic loosely based on the life of Baptiste Debureau, a 19th century mime idolized for his portrayal of the wistful, white-face clown Pierrot. The film won critical acclaim for its faithful recreation of Parisian street theater, as well as for Jean-Louis Barrault's brilliant performance as Debureau. | Above all, it is a love story, focusing on Debureau's passion for the beautiful Garance -- a passion for which he would risk everything... including his own marriage.|
| Features | A-24-Page Booklet, Including Transcribed Exerpt From Brian Stonehill's 1990 Interview With Marcel Carne, Cast Biographies And An Essay By Film Historian Peter Cowie | | Audio: French | | Subtitles: English | | [II] Production Stills Gallery | | [II] Filmographies For Marcel Carne And Jacques Prevert | | [II] U.S. Theatrical Trailer | | [II] Commentary By Film Scholar Charles Affron | | [II] Jacques Prevert's Film Treatment | | [II] Production Designs By Alexandre Trauner | | [I] Restoration Demonstration | | [I,II] New And Improved English Subtitle Translation | | [I,II] Optional Image Quality: RSDL Dual-Layer Edition | | [I,II] New Digital Transfer | | [I] Commentary By Film Scholar Brian Stonehill | | [I] Video Introduction By Director Terry Gilliam |
| Technical Info
|
Release Information
| | Studio: Home Vision/Public Media |
| Release Date: 1/22/2002 |
| Running Time: 190 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 1945 | | Catalog ID: 130 | | UPC: 00037429151723 | | Number of Discs: 2 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: French | | Available Audio Tracks: French | | Available Subtitles: English | | Video: B&W |
| Cast & Crew
| Awards |
Oscar (1947) | | | Jacques Prevert, Nominee, Best Writing, Original Screenplay |
|
| | Professional Reviews | Los Angeles Times
"...One of the few films that has the durability and emotional texture of a great 19th-Century novel. As a piece of romantic/dramatic cinema, its peers are few, its superiors quite simply nonexistent..." 01/16/1992 p.F1USA Today
"...It's paradise to see the film's famed Boulevard of Crime -- 1840s Paris as street carnival -- rendered with revived sparkle after its negative's 57-year workout..." 01/25/2002 p.14D Total Film
"...One of the glories of cinema....The film celebrates freedom of spirit with passion..." 12/01/2000 p.109 Sight and Sound
"...The film is both epic in scope and intimate in focus....The lead actors are superb..." 11/01/2000 p.69 Chicago Sun-Times 10 of 10
...the movie is not a historical epic but a sophisticated, cynical portrait of actors, murderers, swindlers, pickpockets, prostitutes, impresarios and the decadent rich... Few achievements in the world of cinema can equal it. - Roger Ebert
|
| |
|
|
|
http://www.buy.com/prod/children-of-paradise-criterion-collection/q/loc/322/40162852.html
