Rent Children of Paradise (1945)

3.8 of 5 from 246 ratings
3h 0min
Rent Children of Paradise (aka Les Enfants Du Paradis) Online DVD & Blu-ray Rental
  • General info
  • Available formats
Synopsis:
Set amidst the glittering theatre world of 19th century Paris, the story revoles around the beautiful and free-spirted courtesan, Garanace, and the four men who compete for her affections; a mime-artist, an actor, an aristocrat and a criminal. As the melodrama unfolds, we are treated to one of cinema's greatest love stories, a captivating tale of passion, deception and murder.
Actors:
, , , , , , , , , , , Marcelle Monthil, , , , , , , , Auguste Bovério
Directors:
Producers:
Adrien Remaugé
Writers:
Jacques Prévert
Others:
Jacques Prévert
Aka:
Les Enfants Du Paradis
Studio:
Second Sight
Genres:
Classics, Drama, Romance
Collections:
10 Films to Watch if You Like: Day For Night, A History of Films about Film: Part 2, A Brief History of French Poetic Realism, A Brief History of the Tradition of Quality, Cinema Paradiso's 2023 Centenary Club: Part 1, Films to Watch If You Like..., Holidays Film Collection, A Brief History of Film..., The Instant Expert's Guide, The Instant Expert's Guide to: Mel Brooks, The Instant Expert's Guide to: Miloš Forman, Top 10 Screen Kisses (1896-1979), What to Watch If You Liked Monsieur Hulot's Holiday?
Countries:
France
BBFC:
Release Date:
18/09/2000
Run Time:
180 minutes
Languages:
French LPCM Mono
Subtitles:
English
DVD Regions:
Region 2
Formats:
Pal
Aspect Ratio:
Full Screen 1.33:1 / 4:3
Colour:
B & W
Bonus:
  • Original Trailer
BBFC:
Release Date:
17/09/2012
Run Time:
190 minutes
Languages:
French LPCM Mono
Subtitles:
English
Formats:
Pal
Aspect Ratio:
Full Screen 1.37:1
Colour:
B & W
BLU-RAY Regions:
B
Bonus:
  • 'Theatre, Love and War: Making Les Enfants du Paradis': A new documentary on the making of Les Enfants du Paradis and the collaboration of director Marcel Carne, writer Jacques Prevert and production designer Alexandre Trauner. (55 mins)
  • 'Once Upon a Time...Les Enfants du Paradis' (52 mins)
  • The Restoration
  • Restoration - Before and After

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Reviews (4) of Children of Paradise

Beguiling romantic French classic from the 1940s - Children of Paradise review by Mr Aquarium

Spoiler Alert
02/06/2021

It's b&w, subtitled, over 3 hours long, set in the Paris of the long-distant 1840s, and although there is a duel, a murder, and physical assaults, these dramatic actions are [mostly] off-stage. If you can accept this, you'll find a romantic tale of a working-class woman, Garrance, who has four very different men in her orbit. She is, like the actor who played her [Arletty] determined to live fully but retain her independence. The film revels in the details of Parisian theatrical life and is wonderfully restored, the original prints having suffered over the years. It's a mature, perceptive film that is about the difficulty of being true to yourself. It benefits from being taken seriously; when I saw it at our local cinema club, there was an interval. This disc I saw over two evenings. Sorry if this makes it sound a bit heavy, which it's not; it's full of life and creates a convincing picture of 1840s Paris, especially the "Boulevard de Crime". You could call it Dickensian, except that it's much more honest about passion than Dickens ever was.

Some of the extras are very illuminating about the making of the film, and its actors.

3 out of 3 members found this review helpful.

Lumbering but fantastic! - Children of Paradise review by IM

Spoiler Alert
11/02/2021

Old-fashioned , of course. The busy soundtrack bubbles on like a Pathe newsreel,

The story is like a curious variation on Brecht's "Threepenny Opera". Poor Arletty!

What does she want? What accounts for her magic spell over men?

Why do these men want to accuse her of theft - even murder?

I wonder if after the paiteb curtain is lowered on her trumdling carriage at the end,

if she's going to be accused of finishing off "son ami", the rich count (like the watch and the debt collector!

It's the intimate scenes that really resonate; evn more that the torrents of colourful extras who team along

the "Boulevard du Crime" at the start and end.

People watch this film again and again. I suppose the French see it as an amazing triumph of creativity as the Nazis

tried to subjugate and enslave the land of liberte, egalite and fraternite... See it at least once!!!

2 out of 3 members found this review helpful.

Sweeping French romance - Children of Paradise review by SC

Spoiler Alert
15/06/2024

Although three-hours long, this sweeping romance never feels long. Made under difficult and ever-changing wartime conditions, the film is set in 1820s-1830s Paris and shows how rough romance can be on some of its participants.

1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.

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