Paris 36

Theatrical Release Date: 2009 04 03 (USA - Limited)

UPC: 043396309562

Studio: Sony Pictures

MPAA Rating: PG13   Contains:[Violence, Nudity, Profanity, Sexual Situations]

Summary: A star is born in a time of both celebration and instability in this historical drama with music from director Christophe Barratier. In the spring of 1936, Paris is in a state of uncertainty; while the rise of the Third Reich in Germany worries many, a leftist union-oriented candidate, L?on Blum, has been voted into power, and organized labor is feeling its new power by standing up to management. While such matters might normally seem unimportant to Germain Pigoil (G?rard Jugnot), who runs a small vaudeville house in the Faubourg district, the chaos of the city seems to be impacting his life and his work -- his wife, Viviane (Elisabeth Vitali), has run off with her lover, she demands custody of their son, Jojo (Maxence Perrin), and unscrupulous local entrepreneur Galapiat (Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu) threatens to put Germain's theater out of business. With the help of a local political organizer, Milou (Clovis Cornillac), and veteran entertainer Jacky Jacquet (Kad Merad), Germain strikes a deal with Galapiat to reopen the theater, but business is slow until a lovely young woman with a remarkable voice, Douce (Nora Arnezeder), comes looking for a spot in Germain's show. Faubourg 36 (aka Paris 36) received its North American premiere at the 2008 Montreal World Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Category: Historical Film

Awards: Film Presented – Montréal World Film Festival Film Presented – Toronto International Film Festival Best Song – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Song – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Features: Deleted scenes
Commentary with director Christophe Barralier and actress Nora Arnezeder
Nora Arnezeder: The young revelation's beautiful adventure
The Film Locations: Thomas Lautner's making of
Paris 36: Interview with the actor

Paris 36

Format: DVD

Release Date: 08/11/2009

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1 2.40:1

Audio: DD5.1 Dolby Digital 5.1

Runtime: 120 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) French

Subtitles: English

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Disc #1 -- Paris 36
1. Chapter 1 [9:21]
2. Chapter 2 [3:13]
3. Chapter 3 [3:02]
4. Chapter 4 [3:56]
5. Chapter 5 [2:38]
6. Chapter 6 [3:47]
7. Chapter 7 [4:24]
8. Chapter 8 [2:54]
9. Chapter 9 [3:56]
10. Chapter 10 [3:44]
11. Chapter 11 [4:09]
12. Chapter 12 [4:03]
13. Chapter 13 [2:57]
14. Chapter 14 [3:48]
15. Chapter 15 [3:09]
16. Chapter 16 [2:45]
17. Chapter 17 [4:01]
18. Chapter 18 [3:06]
19. Chapter 19 [3:07]
20. Chapter 20 [4:55]
21. Chapter 21 [4:25]
22. Chapter 22 [5:50]
23. Chapter 23 [3:06]
24. Chapter 24 [6:42]
25. Chapter 25 [5:32]
26. Chapter 26 [4:06]
27. Chapter 27 [5:23]
28. Chapter 28 [7:57]

Bruce Eder

Christophe Barratier's Paris 36 (originally issued in France as Faubourg 36) is a remarkable homage to filmmakers past, most notably Marcel Carn?, and to a multitude of styles and looks out of 1930s French cinema. But it's also more than engaging enough on its own terms, so that someone who knows or cares nothing about 1930s cinema can fully enjoy it. The tendency in Hollywood homages to past styles and eras is to remake specific films and plots -- Barratier has gone for something more subtle, in a look more than a plot, and a cast of characters, and just happens to have seized upon a period (the mid-'30s political and economic upheavals besetting France) that might be newly relevant in 2009's economic environment. His cast of characters all seem to have analogs in the French film world of 75 years ago -- Clovis Cornillac's Milou recalls any number of roles played by Jean Gabin early in his career, while Kad Merad's Jacky Jacquet, in all of his impersonations, directly refers to Fernandel on more than one occasion in the course of the plot. Similarly, Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu's Galapiat recalls Marcel Herrand's gangster from Carn?'s Children of Paradise -- and the influences of poetic realism and film noir run all through this movie, very strongly. None of the rest here would work as well as it does, however, were it not for two brilliant and pivotal performances, by G?rard Jugnot as Pigoil, whose story rests at the center of several interlocking tales, and Nora Arnezeder's Douce, who is beguilingly mysterious. Their performances are all good enough and their parts finely written enough that one finds oneself fascinated by these characters, whose attributes all seem rooted in the conflicts of their times. One well-meaning but seemingly talentless would-be performer first achieves success entertaining French rightists with anti-Semitic monologues; another, a would-be leftist, must face the fact that he has never been as brave as his demeanor suggests; and others must face coming of age amid an era of burgeoning chaos -- both political and economic. The plot and script are well supported by art director Jean Rabasse and costume designer Carine Sarfati, who have imbued the movie with a beautiful period look, captured in exquisite detail by cinematographer Tom Stern -- this is a great-looking movie that must be seen on a big screen to be fully appreciated. And although this is not primarily a musical, there are some finely staged and choreographed production numbers at a key point in the plot (the latter courtesy of Corinne Devaux), which stay with the styles of their period sufficiently to retain the illusion of verisimilitude. Barratier has woven all of these disparate elements -- along with a few jabs at the undertow of xenophobia in French politics that seems to refer to some contemporary events -- into a surprisingly fast-moving whole. Paris 36 is 120 minutes of drama, romance, comedy, and music (some of it punctuated by violence) that might almost seem too short for some -- not that there is anything lacking, to be sure, but simply because it's such a marvelous conjuring trick to carry off for two hours. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Jacques Perrin  Producer 
Reinhardt Wagner  Composer (Music Score) 
Christophe Barratier  Director 
Christophe Barratier  Screenwriter 
Nicolas Mauvernay  Producer 
Gérard Jugnot  Actor 
Clovis Cornillac  Actor 
Kad Merad  Actor 
Nora Arnezeder  Actor 
Pierre Richard  Actor 
Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu  Actor 
Maxence Perrin  Actor 
François Morel  Actor 
Elisabeth Vitali  Actor 
Christophe Kourotchkine  Actor 
Eric Naggar  Actor 
Eric Prat  Actor 
Julien Courbey  Actor 
Philippe du Janerand  Actor 
Marc Citti  Actor 
Christian Bouillette  Actor 
Thiery Nenez  Actor 

Country: France,Germany,Czech Republic