Au revoir les enfants (1987)

User Rating:

8.2/10   

Director:

Louis Malle

Writer:

Louis Malle (scenario)

Release Date:

December 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | War

Plot:

A French boarding school run by priests seems to be a haven from World War II until a new student arrives...

Plot Keywords:

School | Boy | Boarding School | Class | Catholic

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 22 wins & 9 nominations

Cast

Gaspard Manesse	...	Julien Quentin
Raphael Fejtö	...	Jean Bonnet / Jean Kippelstein
Francine Racette	...	Mme Quentin
Stanislas Carré de Malberg	...	François Quentin (as Stanislas Carré De Malberg)
Philippe Morier-Genoud	...	Père Jean
François Berléand	...	Père Michel
François Négret	...	Joseph
Peter Fitz	...	Muller
Pascal Rivet	...	Boulanger
Benoît Henriet	...	Ciron
Richard Leboeuf	...	Sagard
Xavier Legrand	...	Babinot
Arnaud Henriet	...	Negus
Jean-Sébastien Chauvin	...	Laviron
Luc Etienne	...	Moreau (as Luc Étienne)

Also Known As:

Auf Wiedersehen, Kinder (West Germany)
Le nouveau (France) (working title)

Runtime:

104 min

Country:

France | West Germany

Language:

French | German | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:PG | South Korea:12 | Argentina:13 | Chile:TE | Finland:K-12 | Iceland:L | Sweden:11 | USA:PG | West Germany:6 (bw)

Filming Locations:

Institution Sainte-Croix, Provins, Seine-et-Marne, France

Company:

Nouvelles Éditions de Films (NEF)

Trivia:

Based on an incident from Louis Malle's own youth.

Goofs:

Continuity: When in the woods and running from his 'captors,' Julien hides in the rocks. During this sequence, his hair changes between shots.

Quotes:

Joseph: Don't be so pious! He's a Jew!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Dead Poets Society (1989)

Soundtrack:

Moment musical no 2

touching film; probably based on an actual event

This is a very moving film, most likely based on an actual event. The Carmelite priest,Lucien Bunel (1900-1945, "Pere Jacques") was founder and director of the Petit College d'Avon, near Fontainebleau. He was arrested on Jan. 15, 1994, accused of hiding 3 Jewish boys among his students, and was deported to the infamous Mauthausen concentration camp. He died in Linz, Austria on June 2, 1945. Malle's film depicts the intense trauma of Jewish children who were separated from their families and forced to take on a new identity in hiding, always afraid of being found out. They also faced the dilemma of how to maintain their Jewishness in the setting of a Catholic school. So, not just another war movie, this film depicts some of the real struggles facing hidden children, many of whom were saved by courageous Christians in Europe.