Elle s'appelait Sarah (2010)

In modern-day Paris, a journalist finds her life becoming entwined with a young girl whose family was torn apart during the notorious Vel' d'Hiv Roundup in 1942.

Director:

Gilles Paquet-Brenner

Writers:

Tatiana De Rosnay (novel), Serge Joncour (screenplay)

Stars:

Kristin Scott Thomas, Mélusine Mayance, Niels Arestrup

5 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kristin Scott Thomas	...	Julia Jarmond
Mélusine Mayance	...	Sarah
Niels Arestrup	...	Jules Dufaure
Frédéric Pierrot	...	Bertrand Tezac
Michel Duchaussoy	...	Édouard Tezac
Dominique Frot	...	Geneviève Dufaure
Natasha Mashkevich	...	Mme Starzynski
Gisèle Casadesus	...	Mamé
Aidan Quinn	...	William Rainsferd
Sarah Ber	...	Rachel
Arben Bajraktaraj	...	M. Starzynski
Karina Hin	...	Zoé
James Gerard	...	Mike Bambers
Joseph Rezwin	...	Joshua (as Joe Rezwin)
Kate Moran	...	Alexandra

Storyline

One of the darkest moments in French history occurred in 1942 Paris when French officials rounded up over ten thousand Jews and placed them in local camps. Eventually, over eight thousand were sent off to German concentration camps. As ten-year old Sarah (Mélusine Mayance) and her family are being arrested, she hides her younger brother in a closet. After realizing she will not be allowed to go home, Sarah does whatever she can to get back to her brother. In 2009, a journalist named Julia Jarmond (Dame Kristin Scott Thomas) is on assignment to write a story on the deported Jews in 1942. When she moves into her father-in-law's childhood apartment, she realizes it once belonged to the Strazynski family, and their daughter Sarah.

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Plot Keywords:

apartment | journalist | escape | key | jewish family | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes the past can unlock the future

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic material including disturbing situations involving the Holocaust

Did You Know?

Trivia

This is the second of three movies about World War II in which Dame Kristin Scott Thomas appeared. The others being The English Patient (1996) and Suite Française (2014).

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Goofs

In the restaurant scene at the end, the Quinn character is seen with his hand over his face. Cut to the child standing in front of glass which reflects Quinn looking straight ahead. Cut back to Quinn with his hand over his face.

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Quotes

Julia Jarmond: And so I write this for you, My Sarah. With the hope that one day, when you're old enough, this story that lives with me, will live with you as well. When a story is told, it is not forgotten. It becomes something else, a memory of who we were; the hope of what we can become.

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Alternate Versions

The UK Blu-ray release has approx 9 minutes cut from the film compared to the French version.

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Connections

Featured in De wereld draait door: Episode #6.38 (2010)

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Soundtracks

La Java Bleue
Music by Vincent Scotto
Lyrics by Georges Koger and Noël Renard
Performed by Fréhel
© 1938 Editions Paul Beusher
Licensed courtesy of EMI Records Ltd
With Kind permission of Editions Beuscher Arpege
All rights reserved

User Reviews

Sarah's key to a can of worms

I was invited to this movie and had no idea of what it was about. Well it did not take long to know it was another holocaust story! I too like the way it was done with an opening into the dark past, about one week after I was born, so we're looking at almost 70 years ago, then we move back and force into last year 2009(not counting the last two days in 2011). There is a point made clear that this horror actually in this case was mainly perpetrated by French people themselves. It seems inconceivable, but the sad truth is that Jews weren't really the flavour of the era in Europe and this certainly made the task easier for the Nazis. But this story is really focused on one little girl who is caught in a two fold tragedy, perhaps one fold to prevent another. This impact the rest of the story with enormous consequences. We are to follow it through the research of a journalist who became obsessed with her finding about it. A well worth effort for all concerned. I will have to come back here for those talented and knowledgeable reviewers to learn a little more about it. But for now I have to say it was an excellent film

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Spain]

Country:

France

Language:

French English Italian German Yiddish

Release Date:

22 July 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Elle s'appelait Sarah

Filming Locations:

Central Park, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

EUR10,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$115,708, 24 July 2011

Gross USA:

$7,693,187

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$24,792,815

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hugo Productions, Studio 37, TF1 Droits Audiovisuels

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min 102 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1