The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967)

Two sisters leave their small seaside town of Rochefort in search of romance. Hired as carnival singers, one falls for an American musician, while the other must search for her ideal partner.

Director:

Jacques Demy

Writer:

Jacques Demy

Stars:

Catherine Deneuve, George Chakiris, Françoise Dorléac

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Catherine Deneuve	...	Delphine Garnier
George Chakiris	...	Etienne
Françoise Dorléac	...	Solange Garnier (as Françoise Dorleac)
Jacques Perrin	...	Maxence
Michel Piccoli	...	Simon Dame
Jacques Riberolles	...	Guillaume Lancien
Grover Dale	...	Bill
Geneviève Thénier	...	Josette (as Geneviève Thenier)
Henri Crémieux	...	Subtil Dutrouz (as Henri Cremieux)
Pamela Hart	...	Judith
Leslie North	...	Esther
Patrick Jeantet	...	Bouboo Garnier
Gene Kelly	...	Andy Miller
Danielle Darrieux	...	Yvonne Garnier
René Pascal	...	Pépé (as René Bazart)

Storyline

Delphine and Solange are two sisters living in Rochefort. Delphine is a dancing teacher and Solange composes and teaches the piano. Maxence is a poet and a painter. He is doing his military service. Simon owns a music shop, he left Paris once month ago to come back where he fell in love 10 years ago. They are looking for love, looking for each other, without being aware that their ideal partner is very close... A film whose scenario is much less important than its feeling of euphory, according to the director Jacques Demy.

---

Plot Keywords:

city name in title | rochefort france | model boat | playing trumpet | cigarette smoking | 

---

Taglines:

...they're Singing and Dancing in the Streets

---

Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Musical | Romance

---

Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

France

Language:

French English

Release Date:

11 April 1968 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Young Girls of Rochefort

Filming Locations:

Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, France

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$10,162, 16 August 1998, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$91,837, 31 December 1998

Company Credits

Production Co:

Madeleine Films,Parc Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jacques Demy originally thought of casting Brigitte Bardot and Audrey Hepburn as the twin sisters.

---

Goofs

In the dance sequences when Andy first arrives, the dancers are in full sun in the street but by the end the shadows have almost covered the entire width of the street.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
[in French, using English subtitles]
Bill: Set up here?
Etienne: OK.
Bill: OK.

---

Alternate Versions

This film was filmed in a double version (French and English) with different sound and dialogues, with each scene shot twice (once for each version)

---

Connections

References On the Town (1949)

---

Soundtracks

Toujours, Jamais
(uncredited)
Written by Michel Legrand
Courtesy of Warner Chappell Music France /BMG Publishing
Performed by Catherine Deneuve (dubbed by Anne Germain), Françoise Dorléac (dubbed by Claude Parent),
Grover Dale (dubbed by Romuald) and George Chakiris (dubbed by José Bartel)

User Reviews

Possibly my favourite musical, definitely an acquired taste, and YES there is an English version!

I just wanted to say I truly love this film and I do believe there will be a great deal of different opinions on it. My point in this post is that I have read in many places that the English language version of this film was never released and/or it's lost. This is not true at all as the first time I watched it was in English on television, late night during a stay in Brazil, with Portuguese subtitles. The catchphrase of "Je vais en Nantes, Je vais en perm' a Nantes" translated to "I'm going to Toulouse, I've nothing to lose."

The soundtrack is currently available on a fantastic new 2-CD set that replaces the long out-of-print 2 LP set, and includes the song "A Pair of Twins" in English! The LP, though, with its booklet and liner notes and pictures is a tough act to follow. Ah well.

I wish this movie would come out on DVD with both versions and greet a whole new generation of fans. Here's hoping this will happen within our lifetimes, while some of us are still young.

The Young Girls of Rochefort was an ambitious effort that paid off very generously in artistic terms but it was not as great a success in the box-office as Demy's previous "Umbrellas of Cherbourg". The score in "Rochefort" is sometimes a little repetitive but the soundtrack to me is the best one ever for a musical....or at least a French musical.