Directed by:
Jean RenoirCinematography:
Christian MatrasComposer:
Joseph KosmaCast:
Jean Gabin, Dita Parlo, Pierre Fresnay, Erich von Stroheim, Gaston Modot, Marcel Dalio, Jacques Becker, Jean Dasté, Julien Carette, Claude Vernier (more)Plots(1)
One of the most acclaimed films of all time, and a powerful anti-war statement, Jean Renoir's profoundly humanist La Grande Illusion remains as vibrant, exciting, and wise today as it was when it was released in 1937. Set in the German prison camps of WWI, the film stars Jean Gabin as Maréchal, and Marcel Dalio as Rosenthal. Like the charming aristocrat Captain de Boeldieu (Pierre Fresnay), these two French aviators were shot down and now spend most of their time escaping from German prison camps before inevitably being recaptured. Between escapes, they do what they can to amuse themselves, but after a tunnel they've dug is discovered, the three are sent to Wintersborn, a forbidding fortress of a prison commanded by former ace pilot Von Rauffenstein (Erich Von Stroheim). Von Rauffenstein cannot help but strike up a friendship with Captain de Boeldieu, a kindred spirit from the doomed nobility. (StudioCanal UK)
(more)Cast
Jean Gabin
France
Best movies:
Les Misérables (1958)
Two Men in Town (1973)
Holy Year (1976)
Dita Parlo
German Empire
Best movies:
Homecoming (1928)
Grand Illusion (1937)
L'Atalante (1934)
Pierre Fresnay
France
Best movies:
Monsieur Vincent (1947)
Le Corbeau (1943)
Grand Illusion (1937)
Erich von Stroheim
Austria-Hungary
Best movies:
Sunset Boulevard (1950)
Greed (1924)
Intolerance: Love's Struggle Through the Ages (1916)
Gaston Modot
France
Best movies:
Beauty of the Devil (1950)
Les Enfants du Paradis (1945)
Grand Illusion (1937)
Marcel Dalio
France
Best movies:
Casablanca (1942)
How to Steal a Million (1966)
The Wing and the Thigh (1976)
Jacques Becker
France
Best movies:
Grand Illusion (1937)
Boudu Saved from Drowning (1932)
The Adventures of Arsène Lupin (1957)
Jean Dasté
France
Best movies:
The Wild Child (1970)
Z (1969)
Grand Illusion (1937)
Julien Carette
France
Best movies:
Agence matrimoniale (1952)
Grand Illusion (1937)
Twelve Hours to Live (1950)
Claude Vernier
German Empire
Best movies:
The Confession (1970)
The President (1961)
Grand Illusion (1937)
Prosper Désiré Péclet
France
Best movies:
Grand Illusion (1937)
Behold the Man (1935)
Berge in Flammen (1931)
Michel Salina
Best movies:
Grand Illusion (1937)
The Battle of the Rails (1946)
The Earrings of Madame de… (1953)
Habib Benglia
Algeria
Best movies:
Les Enfants du Paradis (1945)
Grand Illusion (1937)
Candide ou l'optimisme au XXe siècle (1961)
Sylvain Itkine
France
Best movies:
The Story of the Fox (1930)
Grand Illusion (1937)
The Crime of Monsieur Lange (1936)
Albert Brouett
France
Best movies:
Le Corbeau (1943)
Grand Illusion (1937)
Claude Sainval
France
Best movies:
Grand Illusion (1937)
Muriel, or The Time of Return (1963)
Carl Koch
German Empire
Best movies:
Grand Illusion (1937)