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IMDbPro

The Little Match Girl

Original title: La petite marchande d'allumettes
  • 19281928
  • 40m
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
1.4K
YOUR RATING
The Little Match Girl (1928)
ShortDramaFantasy
An impoverished girl tries to sell matches on NYE. Shivering with cold and unable to sell her wares, she sits in a sheltered nook. Striking a match to keep warm, she sees things in the flame... Read allAn impoverished girl tries to sell matches on NYE. Shivering with cold and unable to sell her wares, she sits in a sheltered nook. Striking a match to keep warm, she sees things in the flame.An impoverished girl tries to sell matches on NYE. Shivering with cold and unable to sell her wares, she sits in a sheltered nook. Striking a match to keep warm, she sees things in the flame.
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
1.4K
YOUR RATING
    • Jean Renoir
    • Jean Tédesco
    • Hans Christian Andersen(story)
    • Jean Renoir
  • Stars
    • Catherine Hessling
    • Eric Barclay
    • Jean Storm
    • Jean Renoir
    • Jean Tédesco
    • Hans Christian Andersen(story)
    • Jean Renoir
  • Stars
    • Catherine Hessling
    • Eric Barclay
    • Jean Storm
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 18User reviews
    • 7Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos6

    Manuel Raaby in The Little Match Girl (1928)
    Catherine Hessling and Jean Storm in The Little Match Girl (1928)
    Catherine Hessling in The Little Match Girl (1928)
    The Little Match Girl (1928)
    The Little Match Girl (1928)

    Top cast

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    Catherine Hessling
    Catherine Hessling
    • Karen
    Eric Barclay
    Eric Barclay
    Jean Storm
    • Axel Ott…
    Manuel Raaby
    Manuel Raaby
    Amy Wells
    Guy Ferrant
    Mme. Heuschling
    • Une passante
    Comtesse Tolstoi
    • La dame au chien
    Lucia Joyce
    • Une danseuse
    • (uncredited)
      • Jean Renoir
      • Jean Tédesco
      • Hans Christian Andersen(story)
      • Jean Renoir
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Trivia
      Lucia Joyce, daughter of James Joyce, dances a small duet as a toy soldier in this film. She had studied under Isadora Duncan's eccentric brother Raymond. It was her debut and only film,
    • Connections
      Featured in Fractured Flickers: Paul Lynde (1963)

    User reviews18

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    8/10
    Bleak adaption of famous story
    Although this version hits on many of the points in the original story, there is no doubt that this is director Jean Renoir's very own interpretation. He perhaps outdoes Hans Christian Andersen in conveying a harsh reality with little or no recompense. The finale is heavy laden with symbolism of which might have been some influence to Orson Welles' "Citizen Kane". Renoir himself seems to have been influenced by Andersen's "Steadfast Tin Soldier" and Victor Herbert's "Babes in Toyland(1903)". And the life size dolls remind one of Maria in "Metropolis(German, 1927)". The New Year's story should be familiar to most- one sorrowful day in the life of a poor girl, without happiness at home nor on the job. This particular adaption presents a girl much older than seen elsewhere and is set in the present. Ranks a close third behind the 1937 cartoon and the near perfect 1986 British musical film. With sound effects and music, the latter used particularly well with a rendition of Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries", which of course(to Western fans)was also used with great results in My Name Is Nobody(Italian, 1974). The video edition viewed had fair to good picture quality.
    helpful•7
    2
    • Gblakelii
    • Jan 2, 2006

    Details

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    • Release date
      • June 8, 1928 (France)
      • France
      • None
      • French
    • Also known as
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • 40 minutes
      • Black and White
      • Silent

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    By what name was The Little Match Girl (1928) officially released in Canada in English?
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