Murmur of the Heart (1971)
Le souffle au coeur (original title)Reference View | Change View
- R
- 1h 58min
- Comedy, Drama
- 17 Oct 1971 (USA)
- Movie
As France is nearing the end of the first Indochina War, an open-minded teenage boy finds himself torn between a rebellious urge to discover love, and the ever-present, almost dominating affection of his beloved mother.
Director:
Writer:
Stars:
Awards:
- Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 2 nominations.
- See more »
Photos and Videos
Cast verified as complete
| Lea Massari | ... |
Clara Chevalier
(as Léa Massari)
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| Benoît Ferreux | ... |
Laurent Chevalier
(as Benoit Ferreux)
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| Daniel Gélin | ... |
Charles Chevalier
(as Daniel Gelin)
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| Michael Lonsdale | ... |
Father Henri
(as Michel Lonsdale)
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| Ave Ninchi | ... |
Augusta
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| Gila von Weitershausen | ... |
Freda (the prostitute)
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| Fabien Ferreux | ... |
Thomas
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| Marc Winocourt | ... |
Marc
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| Micheline Bona | ... |
Aunt Claudine
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| Henri Poirier | ... |
Uncle Léonce
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| Liliane Sorval | ... |
Fernande
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| Corinne Kersten | ... |
Daphné
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Eric Walter | ... |
Laurent's friend
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| François Werner | ... |
Hubert
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| René Bouloc | ... |
Man at Bastille Day party
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| Jacqueline Chauvaud | ... |
Helene
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Jacques Gheusi | ... |
Hotel receptionist
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| Yvon Lec | ... |
Father Superior
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Jean-Pierre Pessoz | ... |
Soldier
(as Jean Pierre Pessoz)
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Bernadette Robert |
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| Annie Savarin | ... |
Le cuisinière
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| Jacques Sereys | ... |
Le médecin (Doctor)
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| Rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
| Éric Burnelli | ... |
Maitre d'Hotel (uncredited)
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Nicole Carrière | ... |
Mother (uncredited)
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| Michel Charrel | ... |
Disquaire (uncredited)
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| Huguette Faget | ... |
Mother (uncredited)
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| Isabelle Kloucowski | ... |
Madeleine (uncredited)
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Lia Wajntal | ... |
Mother (uncredited)
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Directed by
| Louis Malle | ||
Written by
| Louis Malle | ... | (written by) |
Produced by
| Vincent Malle | ... | producer |
| Claude Nedjar | ... | producer |
Cinematography by
| Ricardo Aronovich | ||
Editing by
| Suzanne Baron | ||
Editorial Department
| Catherine Brasier-Snopko | ... | assistant editor (as Catherine Snopko) |
| Solange Leprince | ... | assistant editor |
Production Design by
| Jean-Jacques Caziot | ||
Makeup Department
| Jacky Reynal | ... | makeup artist |
Production Management
| Maurice Urbain | ... | unit manager |
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
| Rida Draïs | ... | assistant director |
| Fernand Moszkowicz | ... | assistant director (as Fernand Moscowicz) |
| Ghislain Uhry | ... | collaborating director |
Art Department
| Philippe Turlure | ... | assistant art director |
Sound Department
| Jean-Claude Laureux | ... | sound |
| Michel Vionnet | ... | assistant sound |
Music Department
| Sidney Bechet | ... | music |
| Gaston Frèche | ... | music |
| Charlie Parker | ... | music |
| Henri Renaud | ... | music |
Script and Continuity Department
| Élisabeth Rappeneau | ... | script girl (as Elizabeth Rappeneau) |
Production Companies
- Nouvelles Éditions de Films (NEF) (co-production: Paris)
- Marianne Productions (co-production: Paris)
- Vides Cinematografica (co-production: Rome)
- Franz Seitz Filmproduktion (co-production: Munich)
Distributors
- Cinema International Corporation (CIC) (1971) (France) (theatrical)
- Medusa Distribuzione (1971) (Italy) (theatrical) (dubbed)
- Gala Film Distributors (1971) (United Kingdom) (theatrical) (subtitled)
- Continental Distributing (1971) (United States) (theatrical) (subtitled)
- Gofilex (1971) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
- Kommunenes Filmcentral (KF) (1971) (Norway) (theatrical)
- Magna-Filmi (1971) (Finland) (theatrical)
- Sandrew Film & Teater AB (1971) (Sweden) (theatrical) (subtitled)
- Filmways Australasian Distributors (1972) (Australia) (theatrical) (as 'Murmur of the Heart') (subtitled)
- Herald Eiga (1972) (Japan) (theatrical) (subtitled)
- VPS Video (1979) (West Germany) (VHS)
- Yleisradio (YLE) (1987) (Finland) (tv)
- Orion Classics (1989) (United States) (theatrical) (re-release) (subtitled)
- M6 (1989) (France) (tv) (rights)
- Orion Home Video (1990) (United States) (VHS) (subtitled)
- NHK-BS2 (1992) (Japan) (tv)
- Pony Canyon (1999) (Japan) (DVD)
- Kinokuniya (2005) (Japan) (DVD)
- Arte Vidéo (2006) (France) (DVD)
- The Criterion Collection (2006) (United States) (DVD) (subtitled)
- Video Film Express (2007) (Netherlands) (DVD)
- Future Film (2008) (Finland) (DVD)
- France 2 (FR2) (2011) (France) (tv)
- I.V.C. (2011) (Japan) (Blu-ray)
- CMV Laservision (2013) (Germany) (DVD)
- CMV Laservision (2014) (Germany) (Blu-ray)
- Gaumont (2015) (France) (Blu-ray) (remastered)
- Malavida (2022) (France) (theatrical) (re-release) (4K restoration)
- The Criterion Channel (2022) (United States) (tv) (streaming) (subtitled)
- France Régions 3 (FR3) (1983) (France) (tv)
- Palomar Pictures International (1971) (United States)
Special Effects
Other Companies
- Laboratoires Franay Tirages Cinematographiques (LTC) (laboratory)
- Paris Studios Cinéma (studio)
- Éditions Gallimard (publisher: Scenario)
Storyline
| Plot Summary |
This is a jolly coming-of-age story about a 14-year-old boy named Laurent Chevalier who is growing up in bourgeois surroundings in Dijon, France. This is France in the mid-1950s rather than America in the 1990s. Thus, Laurent is unharmed by events which would irreparably shatter the self-esteem of a modern American adolescent: he gets drunk, he smokes, he has sex, he is smothered by his mother, he is ignored by his father, a priest makes a pass at him, he gets rheumatoid fever, etc. There's enough scandalous behavior in this film to make 100 made-for-TV movies, and yet this is a very happy and oddly innocent tale.
Written by Tim Horrigan |
| Plot Keywords | |
| Taglines | A souffle of a movie! See more » |
| Genres | |
| Parents Guide | View content advisory » |
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Additional Details
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Did You Know?
| Trivia | According to Pauline Kael, "what makes this movie so different from other movies about bourgeois life is that the director, Louis Malle, sees not only the prudent, punctilious surface but the volatile and slovenly life underneath. He looks at this bourgeois bestiary and sees it as funny and appalling and also - surprisingly - hardy and happy. It is perhaps the first time on film that anyone has shown us the bourgeoisie enjoying its privileges." Also for Kael, "it's a movie not about how one has been scarred but about how one was formed." See more » |
| Goofs | During the chess match, the boys are sitting on what should be the spectator sides of the board, rather than the player sides. It appears that the chessmen were set up along the files rather than the ranks. (The lower right hand corner squares are black, when they should be white.) See more » |
| Movie Connections | Featured in My Dinner with Louis (1984). See more » |
| Quotes |
Clara Chevalier:
Why not take things as they come? Laurent Chevalier: Meaning? Clara Chevalier: I don't know. Begin at the beginning. Wait to experience things yourself. And there's plenty of time. I'm not rushing you. Everyone has to discover love for himself. Lots of things can happen between a man and a woman. Better to find out for yourself, not from a book. See more » |