The comedy/drama is a sly look at
bourgeois life through an assorted cast of characters who all assemble at a
French chateau for a hunting party (both the rich and their servants).
Writer-director Jean Renoir describes
the film as a look at a civilization and culture that had become so
self-indulgent and grotesque that it needed to die. And thus, the French upper-class
did not find the satire of the film to be very funny when it premiered in Paris,
leading to it being banned by the government. Years after WWII, France had gone
through a transformation (France’s identity during the war, especially after Vichy
France which collaborated with the Nazis, had taken a major hit, which prompted
its new leaders like Charles de Gaulle to usher in political and social change
and reform) and Renoir’s film found its audience finally. In 1959, the film was
restored to a version that Renoir approved (as most of the original prints were
lost or destroyed during the war), and has since become one of most revered
films of all-time (Sight & Sound for example has it ranked number four on
its Top 50
Greatest Films of All Time list).
Renoir worked with four
cinematographers on the film: Jean-Paul Alphen, Jean Bachelet, Jacques Lemare, and Alain Renoir, creating a
photography that was ahead of its time (and is still praised today). He also
worked with composer Joseph Kosma
and production designers Max Douy
and Eugene Lourie.
The Rules of the Game and La Grande Illusion are Jean Renoir’s masterpieces (both considered
to be among the best films ever made). My personal favorite of the two is The
Rules of the Game, but they are both must-sees for fans of French Realism and
those looking to have a strong working knowledge of cinema’s greatest films.
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