Filmed during the German occupation, this French milestone centers around the theatrical life of a beautiful courtesan and the four men who love her. Voted the “Best French Film in History” by the French Film Academy in 1990.
Nominated for 1 Oscar. 2 wins & 1 nomination total
Top Critics Reviews
fresh:
Marcel Carne's towering intimate epic of early 19th-century love and the lives of performers, often heralded as the greatest French film of all time.
– Melissa Anderson,
Village Voice,
6 Mar 2012
fresh:
Before French cinema reinvented itself with jump cuts and cool bobs, Marcel Carne's 19th-century backstage drama was the epitome of good taste: a sumptuous spread of genteel sparring and epic heartache.
– Joshua Rothkopf,
Time Out New York,
6 Mar 2012
fresh:
If you give this movie time to work on you, the elements that seem overly artificial or impossibly distant from our own time fade into insignificance, and you're left with a complicated and wonderful romantic drama that's full of surprises.
– Andrew O'Hehir,
Salon.com,
8 Mar 2012
fresh:
Shot in 1943 during World War II, Children of Paradise overcame so many seemingly impossible obstacles that today the film seems enchanted.
– Rene Rodriguez,
Miami Herald,
17 May 2012
fresh:
To luxuriate in the film's 3-hour, 10-minute length is to experience this masterpiece as it hasn't been experienced since the day it opened.