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IMDbPro

Farewell

Original title: L'affaire Farewell
  • 20092009
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 1h 53m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
6.7K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
38,283
3,348
Emir Kusturica and Guillaume Canet in Farewell (2009)
The French intelligence service alerts the U.S. about a Soviet spy operation during the height of the Cold War, which sets off an unfortunate chain of events.
Play trailer2:21
1 Video
17 Photos
DramaRomanceThriller
The French intelligence service alerts the U.S. about a Soviet spy operation during the height of the Cold War, which sets off an unfortunate chain of events.The French intelligence service alerts the U.S. about a Soviet spy operation during the height of the Cold War, which sets off an unfortunate chain of events.The French intelligence service alerts the U.S. about a Soviet spy operation during the height of the Cold War, which sets off an unfortunate chain of events.
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
6.7K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
38,283
3,348
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Director
      • Christian Carion
    • Writers
      • Christian Carion
      • Sergey Kostin(book "Bonjour Farewell")
      • Eric Raynaud
    • Stars
      • Guillaume Canet
      • Emir Kusturica
      • Alexandra Maria Lara
    Top credits
    • Director
      • Christian Carion
    • Writers
      • Christian Carion
      • Sergey Kostin(book "Bonjour Farewell")
      • Eric Raynaud
    • Stars
      • Guillaume Canet
      • Emir Kusturica
      • Alexandra Maria Lara
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 31User reviews
    • 71Critic reviews
    • 74Metascore

    Videos1

    Farewell
    Trailer 2:21
    Farewell

    Photos17

    Farewell (2009)
    Emir Kusturica and Guillaume Canet in Farewell (2009)
    Emir Kusturica and Guillaume Canet in Farewell (2009)
    Emir Kusturica and Guillaume Canet in Farewell (2009)
    Guillaume Canet and Alexandra Maria Lara in Farewell (2009)
    Emir Kusturica and Guillaume Canet in Farewell (2009)
    Guillaume Canet, Alexandra Maria Lara, Timothé Riquet, and Lauriane Riquet in Farewell (2009)
    Emir Kusturica and Guillaume Canet in Farewell (2009)
    Emir Kusturica in Farewell (2009)
    Emir Kusturica and Ingeborga Dapkunaite in Farewell (2009)
    Emir Kusturica and Guillaume Canet in Farewell (2009)
    Emir Kusturica, Christian Carion, and Ingeborga Dapkunaite in Farewell (2009)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Guillaume Canet
    Guillaume Canet
    • Pierre
    Emir Kusturica
    Emir Kusturica
    • Grigoriev
    Alexandra Maria Lara
    Alexandra Maria Lara
    • Jessica
    Ingeborga Dapkunaite
    Ingeborga Dapkunaite
    • Natasha
    Philippe Magnan
    Philippe Magnan
    • Mitterrand
    Aleksey Gorbunov
    Aleksey Gorbunov
    • Choukhov
    • (as Oleksii Gorbunov)
    Dina Korzun
    Dina Korzun
    • Alina
    Niels Arestrup
    Niels Arestrup
    • Vallier
    David Soul
    David Soul
    • Hutton
    Fred Ward
    Fred Ward
    • Reagan
    Willem Dafoe
    Willem Dafoe
    • Feeney
    Marc Berman
    • Jacques
    Christian Carion
    Christian Carion
    • Favier
    Evgeniy Kharlanov
    Evgeniy Kharlanov
    • Igor
    • (as Yevgeni Kharlanov)
    Lauriane Riquet
    • Ophelie
    Timothé Riquet
    • Damien
    • (as Timothe Riquet)
    Vsevolod Shilovskiy
    Vsevolod Shilovskiy
    • Gorbachev
    • (as Vsevolod Shilovsky)
    Vladimir Tolstoy
    • Chef du KGB
    • (as Vladimir Tolsty)
    • Director
      • Christian Carion
    • Writers
      • Christian Carion
      • Sergey Kostin(book "Bonjour Farewell")
      • Eric Raynaud
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Alexander Avdeev (Russian ambassador in France who became Russian Culture Minister and who had been expelled from France in 1983 because of Farewell) blocked most Russian actors to play in this movie, including Sergey Makovetskiy and Nikita Mikhalkov, because he did not want to back a movie about a Russian traitor. He also blocked authorizations to film in Moscow, while most of the plot takes place in Moscow. Christian Carion had to pretend to film a Coca Cola advertisement for the few images of the city.
    • Goofs
      In the Soviet Union, motorists would typically keep their windscreen wipers in their glove compartments for fear of having them stolen, as they were hard to come by. Yet in the movie, every single car has its wipers attached.
    • Connections
      Featured in En bonne intelligence (2010)
    • Soundtracks
      Awakening
      Written by Cyril Morin

      Massive Music/Some Players

    User reviews31

    Review
    Review
    Top review
    9/10
    "Farewell"
    FAREWELL is an elegant depiction of Cold War espionage based on true events that proved catalytic to the demise of the Soviet Union. Pierre Froment (Guillame Canet), a French businessman who is 'above suspicion' due to his amateur status, is compelled to deliver high level intelligence from reckless, disillusioned KGB veteran Sergei Grigoriev (Emir Kusturica) to Reagan's cabinet via François Mitterrand, thereby crippling Soviet intelligence.

    Whilst Froment and Grigoriev convincingly resemble weary bureaucrats, scenes in the White House lack credibility - perhaps an attempt at satire by Carion, they are nevertheless rendered redundant by the sombre refinement of the film. Cultural boundaries between East and West deliver brief comic reprieve, and signal the imminent disintegration of an already stagnant regime.

    Suffused with nostalgia, we observe Brezhnev-era Moscow cast in the lurid yellow light of street-lamps, or bleached white by lens flare, with an effortless attention to detail - Muscovites stand in endless queues on street corners as Soviet vehicles roam empty boulevards flanked by Socialist realist statues. Subterranean scenes add a noir aesthetic, reflecting the shades of deception throughout - in the words of Grigoriev; "I live in lies and solitude".

    Kusturica gives a shatteringly affecting performance, conveying Grigoriev's wistful patriotism and hope for his son's future with a rare eloquence. Carion creates real suspense and accommodates subtle plot twists, but there are no cheap thrills here- the film defies the brash conventions of its genre. Understated, fluid camera-work and dedicated performances deliver a film of classic style and depth. 5 out of 5

    Cambridge Film Festival Daily
    helpful•26
    2
    • cambridgefilmfest
    • Sep 28, 2010

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 23, 2009 (France)
    • Country of origin
      • France
    • Official sites
      • Official site
      • Production Notes
    • Languages
      • French
      • English
      • Russian
    • Also known as
      • The Farewell Affair
    • Filming locations
      • Helsinki, Finland
    • Production companies
      • Nord-Ouest Films
      • Le Bureau
      • Pathé
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • €17,500,000 (estimated)
    • Gross worldwide
      • $7,406,706
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 53 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
      • DTS
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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