La chambre verte (1978)

Director:

François Truffaut

Writers:

Jean Gruault (writer)
Henry James (novella "The Altar of the Dead")

Release Date:

5 April 1978 (France)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A French little town, at the end of the twenties. Julien Davenne is a journalist whose wife Julie died a decade ago...

Plot Keywords:

Death | Based On Story | Foreign Language Adaptation | Obsessed With The Dead | Dying Young

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

François Truffaut	...	Julien Davenne
Nathalie Baye	...	Cecilia Mandel
Jean Dasté	...	Bernard Humbert
Patrick Maléon	...	Georges
Jeanne Lobre	...	Mme Rambaud (as Jane Lobre)
Antoine Vitez	...	Bishop's secretary
Jean-Pierre Moulin	...	Gerard Mazet
Serge Rousseau	...	Paul Masigny
Jean-Pierre Ducos	...	Priest in the mortuary room
Annie Miller	...	Genevieve Mazet
Nathan Miller	...	Genevieve Mazet's son
Marie Jaoul	...	Yvonne Mazet
Monique Dury	...	Monique
Laurence Ragon	...	Julie Davenne
Marcel Berbert	...	Dr. Jardine

Also Known As:

The Green Room (USA)
The Vanishing Fiancée (USA)

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Brazil:14 | Spain:13 | UK:A | Netherlands:6 (2009) (DVD) | France:U | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Caen, Calvados, France

Company:

Les Films du Carrosse

Trivia:

The photos on the chapel wall consist of François Truffaut's friends and idols, such as Jeanne Moreau, Oskar Werner, Jean Cocteau, Guillaume Apollinaire, Oscar Wilde and Henry James, the author of the story on which the film is based, as well as Maurice Jaubert, whose music is used in the film.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Jin tian de yu zen me yang? (2006)

Truffaut's most personal film

I was very impressed, when I watched this movie for the first time. I only knew Truffaut's most popular films (like Jules et Jim or Fahrenheit 451) by then. This film is so completely different than the ones mentioned above. I think Truffaut shows us his inner-self by playing the role of Julien Davenne, a journalist obsessed with the idea of building an altar for his dead. The audience gets a direct access to his feelings and thoughts about life and death. This film is a chance to understand Truffaut and his work better. He knew that the film would not be a box-office hit, but that was not important to Truffaut. He liked the short-stories by Henry James and just did what he wanted to. In my opinion Truffaut did a beautiful job by making this film. I think this film demands very much from its viewers. "The Green Room" provokes a self-reflection in the viewer. The viewer has to deal with his own attitude towards life and death. So this is not an easy film to watch. But if you want a film that differs from all the high-tech, action-loaded movies of the present that simultaneously gives you a very personal access to the man who made it, "The Green Room" is a good choice.