Les demoiselles de Rochefort (1967)

Directors:

Jacques Demy
Agnès Varda

Writer:

Jacques Demy (written by)

Release Date:

11 April 1968 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Musical | Romance

Tagline:

...they're Singing and Dancing in the Streets

Plot:

Delphine and Solange are two sisters living in Rochefort. Delphine is a dancing teacher and Solange composes and teaches the piano...

Plot Keywords:

Love | Twins | Piano | Dance | Painter

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar.

Cast

Catherine Deneuve	...	Delphine Garnier
George Chakiris	...	Etienne
Françoise Dorléac	...	Solange Garnier (as Françoise Dorleac)
Jacques Perrin	...	Maxence
Michel Piccoli	...	Simon Dame
Jacques Riberolles	...	Guillaume Lancien
Grover Dale	...	Bill
Geneviève Thénier	...	Josette (as Geneviève Thenier)
Henri Crémieux	...	Subtil Dutrouz (as Henri Cremieux)
Pamela Hart	...	Judith
Leslie North	...	Esther
Patrick Jeantet	...	Boubou Garnier
Gene Kelly	...	Andy Miller
Danielle Darrieux	...	Yvonne Garnier
René Bazart	...	Pépé

Also Known As:

The Young Girls of Rochefort (USA)
Las señoritas de Rochefort (Argentina) (Spain) [es]
A rochefort-i kisasszonyok (Hungary) [hu]
Die Fräulein von Rochefort (East Germany) (dubbed version) [de]
Die Mädchen von Rochefort (West Germany) [de]
Duas Garotas Românticas (Brazil) [pt]
Flickorna i Rochefort (Sweden) [sv]
Josephine (Italy) [it]
Pigerne fra Rochefort (Denmark) [da]
Pikene fra Rochefort (Norway) [no]
Rochefortin tytöt (Finland) [fi]
Ta koritsia tou Rochefort (Greece) [el]
Tatli günler (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]

Runtime:

120 min | Argentina:128 min | Germany:122 min | Japan:127 min | Sweden:126 min | USA:125 min

Country:

France

Language:

French | English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Australia:G | UK:PG | Argentina:Atp | Finland:S | France:U | Sweden:Btl | USA:G | Hong Kong:I

Filming Locations:

Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, France

Company:

Madeleine Films

Trivia:

Director Jacques Demy wanted Gene Kelly to star in this film from the outset, however he had to wait two years before Gene Kelly was free of other commitments.

Quotes:

Maxence: I must steer clear of dreary bourgeoisie art, I must be avant-garde and paint what's in my heart.

Movie Connections:

References Les enfants du paradis (1945)

Soundtrack:

Départ Des Forains (ballet)

And I Don't Even Speak French!

(with apologies to Jonathan Rosenbaum...)

Watching the Hollywood musicals of Astaire and Kelly, one can't help but marvel at the skill and precision of the dancing and the mise en scene, and be buoyed by the very idea that the world could be so perfect, if only in a movie. "Rochefort" isn't perfect in the same way, but in pushing the musical to a different plane it achieves a kind of perfection, one dependent not on the talents of its cast or, as the popular Broadway musicals were, on the book & lyrics.

(Which is not to say that there isn't great music! Themes are repeated, to be sure, but Legrand's melodies delight, and there's more musical variance here than in "Umbrellas of Cherbourg".)

Musicals, like most popular entertainment, usually serve to reinforce our ideals. The 30 years since its release may have been kind, but "The Young Girls of Rochefort" is a rare thing, an entertainment that challenges, flies in the face of convention.

Of special note are the colors, delightfully absurd; the English subtitles, much of which read in perfect sync (including rhymes) with the music (a coinciding English-language verson was shot but never released); the macabre- this is probably the only musical with a song about an ax-murder.

The world in which this movie exists hasn't been seen on the screen before or since. Of course, all musicals are fantasy of a kind, but Demy takes it somewhere else. It is one of film's truly unique experiences.