Children of Paradise (1945) Les enfants du paradis (original title)

Director:

Marcel Carné

Writer:

Jacques Prévert (scenario and dialogue)

Release Date:

15 November 1946 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

This tale centers around the love between Baptiste, a theater mime, and Claire Reine, an actress and...

Plot Keywords:

Count | Love | Mime | Actor | Actress

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar.

Cast

Arletty	...	Caire Reine, dite Garance
Jean-Louis Barrault	...	Jean-Baptiste Debureau
Pierre Brasseur	...	Frédérick Lemaître
Pierre Renoir	...	Jéricho
María Casares	...	Nathalie (as María Casarès)
Gaston Modot	...	Fil de Soie
Fabien Loris	...	Avril
Marcel Pérès	...	Le directeur des Funambules
Palau	...	Le régisseur des Funambules (as Pierre Palau)
Etienne Decroux	...	Anselme Debureau (as Étienne Decroux)
Jane Marken	...	Mme Hermine (as Jeanne Marken)
Marcelle Monthil	...	Marie
Louis Florencie	...	Le gendarme des 'Adrets'
Habib Benglia	...	L'employé des bains turcs
Rognoni	...	Le directeur du Grand Théâtre
Jacques Castelot	...	Georges
Paul Frankeur	...	L'inspecteur de police
Albert Rémy	...	Scarpia Barrigni
Robert Dhéry	...	Célestin
Auguste Bovério	...	Le premier auteur de 'L'auberge des Adrets' (as Auguste Boverio)
Paul Demange	...	Le deuxième auteur de 'L'auberge des Adrets'
Louis Salou	...	Édouard comte de Montray - l'homme qui épousera Garance
Marcel Herrand	...	Pierre-François Lacenaire
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jeanne Dussol	...	La femme à barbe
Lucienne Legrand	...	La première jolie théâtreuse (as Lucienne Vigier)
Maurice Schutz	...	L'encaisseur agressé par Lacnaire
Germain Aeros	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Joe Alex	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Nicolas Bataille	...	Extra (uncredited)
Jean-Pierre Belmon	...	Le petit Baptiste Debureau (uncredited)
Gérard Blain	...	(uncredited)
Bill Bocket	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Albert Broquin	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Rivers Cadet	...	Un bourgeois (uncredited)
Jean Carmet	...	Un spectateur au paradis des Funambules (uncredited)
Maurice Cartier	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Grégoire Chabas	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Choisin	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Henri de Livry	...	Le client de l'écrivain public (uncredited)
Max Dejean	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Jean Diéner	...	Le troisième auteur de 'L'Auberge des Adrets' (uncredited)
Guy Favières	...	Un encaisseur agressé par Lacenaire (uncredited)
Madhyanah Foy	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Roger Gaillard	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Jean Gold	...	Le deuxième dandy (uncredited)
Gustave Hamilton	...	Le concierge du Grand Théâtre (uncredited)
Josselin	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Jean Lanier	...	Iago - dans la représentation d' 'Othello' (uncredited)
Léon Larive	...	Le concierge des Funambules (uncredited)
Lioté	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Marcel Melrac	...	Un gendarme (uncredited)
André Numès Fils	...	L'homme qui se fait voler sa montre (uncredited)
Raphaël Patorni	...	Un dandy (uncredited)
Cynette Quero	...	La deuxième jolie théâtreuse (uncredited)
Pierre Réal	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Paul Temps	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Michel Vadet	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Roger Vincent	...	Petit rôle (uncredited)
Lucien Walter	...	Le marchand de billets (uncredited)

Directed by
Marcel Carné

Writing credits
Jacques Prévert		(scenario and dialogue)

Produced by
Raymond Borderie	....	producer: Pathé Cinéma
Adrien Remaugé	....	producer

Original Music by
Maurice Thiriet

Cinematography by
Roger Hubert

Film Editing by
Henri Rust		(as Henry Rust)
Madeleine Bonin		(uncredited)

Production Design by
Léon Barsacq		(as Leon Barsacq)
Raymond Gabutti
Alexandre Trauner		(as Alex. Trauner)

Art Direction by
Léon Barsacq		(as Leon Barsacq)
Raymond Gabutti

Costume Design by
Mayo

Production Management
Fred Orain	....	production manager
Louis Théron	....	unit manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Pierre Blondy	....	artistic assistant director
Bruno Tireux	....	technical assistant director

Art Department
Alexandre Trauner	....	collaborator: sets (as Alex. Trauner)
Fourrastier	....	original poster designer (uncredited)

Sound Department
Jacques Carrère	....	sound re-recording mixer
Jean Monchablon	....	sound
Robert Teisseire	....	sound engineer

Camera and Electrical Department
Roger Forster	....	still photographer
Marc Fossard	....	camera operator

Music Department
Joseph Kosma	....	composer: pantomime music
Joseph Kosma	....	music collaborator
Charles Münch	....	conductor

Other crew
Gilles Margaritis	....	assistant: pantomimes

Production Companies

• Société Nouvelle Pathé Cinéma

Distributors

• Pathé Consortium Cinéma (1945) (France) (theatrical)
• Tricolore (1946) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled) (edited)
• Internationale Filmallianz (IFA) (1947) (Germany) (theatrical)
• René Chateau Video (1999) (France) (VHS)
• Pathé (2006) (France) (DVD)
• Compagnie Française de Distribution Cinématographique (CFDC) (????) (France) (theatrical) (re-release)
• New Star (2011) (Greece) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Zazie Films (2005) (Japan) (theatrical) (re-release)
• 01 Distribution (2008) (Italy) (DVD)
• A Contracorriente Films (2013) (Spain) (DVD)
• A-Film Home Entertainment (2005) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (1992) (USA) (VHS) (laserdisc)
• Criterion Collection, The (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2012) (USA) (DVD)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2003) (Australia) (DVD)
• Versátil Home Vídeo (2002) (Brazil) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du Conservatoire  music performers (as La Société des Concerts du Conservatoire)
• Pathé-Cinéma  studio: Paris-Joinville
• La Victorine  studio: Nice
• Laboratories Pathé Cinéma  titles
• Lanvin  costume makers (uncredited)
• Lobster Films  sound restoration
• Ramsès  recording studio: Restauration du son 1991

Also Known As:

"Les enfants du paradis" - France (original title)

Runtime:

USA:163 min (edited) | France:190 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | Sweden:7 (1986) | UK:PG | USA:Approved | Brazil:18 | West Germany:12 | Japan:G (2010) | USA:Not Rated

Filming Locations:

Nice, Alpes-Maritimes, France

Company:

Société Nouvelle Pathé Cinéma

Trivia:

Distributed in the USA as a sort of French made Gone with the Wind (1939).

Goofs:

Continuity: The positions of Avril and Lacenaire in the Turkish baths changes between the shot of their entry and the closer shot.

Quotes:

Man in the audience:Shut up! We can't hear the pantomime!

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Zomergasten: Episode #4.2" (1991)

love story of sublime brilliance and complexity

*Enfants* is a work of genius. I won't say it's the greatest film of all time, because its scope is very narrow: the mystery of the heart, the wayward course of love, the bittersweet joy and sorrow of lovers. Maybe that isn't so narrow after all, but it doesn't cover quite as wide a spectrum as other great films (seven samurai, casablanca, mahabharata, key largo etc). Nonetheless, this film belongs in that same company, for an unsurpassed portrayal of loves lost and won, and also the passion of art, a form of love expressing itself in public creativity, enriching the lives of many. Love between lovers enriches them alone; art enriches the world.

The woman Garance is loved by 4 men in this film. Two of them, at least, are superb renditions of genius-in-creation: the mime Baptiste, and the actor Frederick. Both are geniuses, but while Baptiste is silent, weak, and sad, Frederick is loud, powerful, irrepressively optimistic, courageous and generous. He is one of the greatest characters ever to grace the screen. He has one flaw: his genius is so pure, he has a blind spot regarding the weaknesses of others. He cannot conceive of an emotion such as jealousy, and so can never play Iago - until Garance, the fallen woman, finally teaches him.

The other character who may be a genius is Lacenaire, but he is a criminal genius. Evil, twisted, burning with hatred, he has only one true and honest anchor in society - his love for Garance. It doesn't save him, but it keeps him from being as bad as he could be.

Without going into the whole plot (it's long and convoluted) the primary paradox relates to intersecting and disconnected paths of love between the characters. Garance is loved by 4 men, but she really only loves Baptiste. So does Nathalie, a sweet and simple girl, who has the courage to do what Baptiste can not: she declares her love, and so they marry and have a child. Baptiste lacks the strength to take Garance when he has the chance, and so no one is happy - except maybe Frederick, he lives as life should be lived, and even the pain of losing Garance turns to gold in the alchemy of his art.

But despite the pain, and the unhappiness, loss and death, the world of *enfants* is beautiful. It's a world where love and art mean more than success or failure, a world where money is irrelevant and the passion for life burns away the curtain between fantasy and reality. It's three hours of *paradis*!

10/10, with a bullet through the heart.