Grand Illusion Movie Review 1937

Unshakably classic anti-war film by Renoir, in which French prisoners of war attempt to escape from their German captors during WWI. An indictment of the way Old World, aristocratic nobility was brought to modern bloodshed in the Great War. Renoir's optimism remains relentless, but was easier to believe in before WWII. In French, with English subtitles.

Distribution

Tapeworm Video Distributors, 27833 Hopkins Ave., Unit 6, Valencia, CA 91355, Phone: (661)257-4904, Fax: (661)257-4820, Email: sales@tapeworm.com, URL: http://www.tapeworm.com

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 111 minutes.
Originally from French.

Cast and Crew

Genres

POW/MIA, World War I, Anti-War War Movies, Buddies, 4 Bones

Screenplay

Jean Renoir, Charles Spaak

Cast

Jean Gabin, Erich von Stroheim, Pierre Fresnay, Marcel Dalio, Julien Carette, Gaston Modot, Jean Daste, Dita Parlo, Georges Peclet, Werner Florian, Sylvain Itkine, Jacques Becker

Cinematography

Christian Matras

Director

Jean Renoir

Music

Joseph Kosma

Producer

RAC

Awards

N.Y. Film Critics 1938: Foreign Film.