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. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Catherine Deneuve	...	Delphine Garnier
George Chakiris	...	Etienne
Françoise Dorléac	...	Solange Garnier
Jacques Perrin	...	Maxence
Michel Piccoli	...	Simon Dame
Jacques Riberolles	...	Guillaume Lancien
Grover Dale	...	Bill
Geneviève Thénier	...	Josette
Henri Crémieux	...	Subtil Dutrouz
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.

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Plot Keywords:

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

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Taglines:

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

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

G

Did You Know?

Trivia

Included among the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die", edited by Steven Schneider.

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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.

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Quotes

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

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Alternate Versions

Each musical number was filmed twice, both in French and English, to make a French and an International version. However, in the International version, scenes with dialogues were only re-dubbed in English and not re-shot. The International version has never been released physically.

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Connections

Featured in The Beaches of Agnès (2008)

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Soundtracks

Chanson De Delphine
(uncredited)
Written by Michel Legrand
Courtesy of Warner Chappell Music France /BMG Publishing
Performed by Catherine Deneuve (dubbed by Anne Germain)

User Reviews

And I Don't Even Speak French!

(with apologies to Jonathan Rosenbaum...)

Watching the Hollywood musicals of Astaire and Kelly, one can't help but marvel at the skill and precision of the dancing and the mise en scene, and be buoyed by the very idea that the world could be so perfect, if only in a movie. "Rochefort" isn't perfect in the same way, but in pushing the musical to a different plane it achieves a kind of perfection, one dependent not on the talents of its cast or, as the popular Broadway musicals were, on the book & lyrics.

(Which is not to say that there isn't great music! Themes are repeated, to be sure, but Legrand's melodies delight, and there's more musical variance here than in "Umbrellas of Cherbourg".)

Musicals, like most popular entertainment, usually serve to reinforce our ideals. The 30 years since its release may have been kind, but "The Young Girls of Rochefort" is a rare thing, an entertainment that challenges, flies in the face of convention.

Of special note are the colors, delightfully absurd; the English subtitles, much of which read in perfect sync (including rhymes) with the music (a coinciding English-language verson was shot but never released); the macabre- this has to be the happiest musical with a song about an ax-murder.

The world in which this movie exists hasn't been seen on the screen before or since. Of course, all musicals are fantasy of a kind, but Demy takes it somewhere else. It is one of film's truly unique experiences.

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

Gross USA:

$91,837

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$98,221

Company Credits

Production Co:

Parc Film, Madeleine Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1