RÈgle du Jeu, La

Synopsis
Denigrated by the public, vilified by the critics, re-cut at the insistence of its producers, and finally banned by the French government as ‘demoralising’ and unpatriotic, La Règle du jeu (The Rules of the Game) was a commercial disaster at the time of its original release. On the surface, a series of interlinked romantic intrigues taking place at a weekend shooting party in a country chateau, the film is in fact a study in the corruption and decay of French society on the eve of the outbreak of World War II. This social comediy is now hailed as a masterpiece.
As in La Grande illusion (1937), Renoir used the convention of the microcosm, taking the events of the house party to comment, with irony and despair, on the state of France on the eve of disaster. He himself described La Règle du jeu as ‘a sort of reconstructed documentary on the condition of society at a given moment... It is a war film, and yet there is no reference to the war. Beneath its seemingly innocuous appearance the story attacks the very structure of our society.'
After its ban, the received occasional showings in various versions, but it wasn’t until 1956, when 200 cans of outtakes were discovered, that it could be restored to very nearly its original form. DVD extras are a biography of Renoir and a 42-minute documentary on the making of La Règle du jeu, directed by Pierre Oscar Lévy (1987) for the series Image par Image.
Language
English
Country
France
Year of production
1939
Subjects
French studies; Media studies
Keywords
censorship; French cinema; Renoir, Jean; social history

Distribution Formats

Type
DVD
Format
Region 2 PAL
Price
£19.99
Availability
Sale
Duration/Size
152 minutes
Year
2003

Type
VHS
Format
PAL
Price
£15.99
Availability
Sale
Duration/Size
110 minutes
Year
2003

Sections

Title
Règle du Jeu, La
Duration
110 mins

Title
Making of La Règle du Jeu, The
Synopsis
A 42-minute documentary, directed by Pierre Oscar Lévy, on the making of LA REGLE DU JEU. Made in 1987 for the series IMAGE PAR IMAGE.
Duration
42 mins

Distributor

Name

BFI Video

Email
video.films@bfi.org.uk
Web
http://www.bfi.org.uk External site opens in new window
Phone
020 7957 8957
Fax
020 7957 8968
Address
21 Stephen Street
London
W1T 1LN

Record Stats

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