Is Paris Burning? (1966)

The departure of the German Army from Paris in 1944.

Director:

René Clément

Writers:

Larry Collins (book), Dominique Lapierre (book)

Stars:

Jean-Paul Belmondo, Charles Boyer, Leslie Caron

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jean-Paul Belmondo	...	Pierrelot - Yvon Morandat
Charles Boyer	...	Docteur Monod
Leslie Caron	...	Françoise Labé
Jean-Pierre Cassel	...	Lieutenant Henri Karcher
George Chakiris	...	GI in Tank (as Georges Chakiris)
Bruno Cremer	...	Colonel Rol-Tanguy
Claude Dauphin	...	Colonel Lebel
Alain Delon	...	Jacques Chaban-Delmas
Kirk Douglas	...	Gen. George S. Patton Jr.
Pierre Dux	...	Cerat - Alexandre Parodi
Glenn Ford	...	Lt. Gen. Omar N. Bradley
Gert Fröbe	...	General Dietrich von Choltitz (as Gert Froebe)
Daniel Gélin	...	Yves Bayet
Georges Géret	...	The Baker
Hannes Messemer	...	General Jodl

Storyline

In this sprawling, star-laden film, we see the struggles of various French resistance factions to regain control of Paris near the end of World War II. The Nazi general in charge of Paris, Dietrich von Cholitz (Fröbe), is under orders from Hitler himself to burn the city if he cannot control it or if the Allies get too close. Much of the drama centers around the moral deliberations of the general, the Swedish ambassador (Welles), and the eager but desperate leaders of the resistance.

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Plot Keywords:

year 1944 | french military | french resistance | firearm | wehrmacht | 

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Taglines:

"Burn Paris!" was the order that had come shrieking over the phone.

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Genres:

Drama | History | War

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Certificate:

PG-13

Did You Know?

Trivia

In 1967, Paramount Pictures distributed this film in the U.S. (dubbed in English and retitled "Is Paris Burning?") on a double bill with Chuka (1967) starring Rod Taylor and Ernest Borgnine.

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Goofs

Some of men's suits, female haircuts and male spectacles are clearly from 1966.

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Quotes

Lieutenant Henri Karcher: [over the phone to his father] Hello, Papa? This is Lieutenant Karcher. Your son. In spite of your pessimstic view of my military career, I'd like to announce I've just made some prisoners of the general in command of Paris at the Hotel Maurice. He surrendered to me. But I'm still very bad at drill.

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Crazy Credits

The end credit sequence is in color.

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Connections

Referenced in Project X Zone (2012)

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Soundtracks

Paris en Colère
Music by Maurice Jarre
Lyrics by Maurice Vidalin
Performed by Mireille Mathieu

User Reviews

Worth Seeing for World War II Buffs and Visitors to Paris

I made my first trip to Paris this past year. There are remembrances of World War Two on nearly every street corner, plaques with the names of resistance fighters who died during the war and during the Liberation. And France's military history is also on display, from monuments to Louis XIII, to Napoleon, and to their Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arc de Triomphe. As Americans we forget sometimes that the French army lost millions during World War One, and struggled with how to fight the Second World War. Losing Paris was a humiliating defeat that the Free French army needed desperately to avenge. This film does a pretty engaging job of telling the story from a French point of view. Like many war films from the time it's a little too long, some celebrity cameos are miscast, and some facts and events are abridged. But unlike some other films from the period, it has some humor, and some great pathos. There's also great footage of the real liberation intercut with the narrative. If you've ever been to Paris, it's a beautiful travelogue of all the famous public spaces, seen through eyes from 1945 and 1966. I can only imagine seeing it in widescreen, and I hope to get a non-dubbed version soon.

Details

Country:

France USA

Language:

French German English

Release Date:

26 October 1966 (France)

Also Known As:

Is Paris Burning?

Filming Locations:

Rue de la Huchette, Paris 5, Paris, France

Company Credits

Production Co:

Marianne Productions, Transcontinental Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

175 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) (Westrex Recording System) Mono (35 mm prints)

Color:

Black and White Color (final sequence)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1