Limerculer
A waste of 90 minutes of my life
Senteur
As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.
Allison Davies
The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
KissEnglishPasto
............................................................from Pasto,Colombia...Via: L.A. CA., CALI, COLOMBIA and ORLANDO, FL Go to the IMDb.com Search-Window and enter the title: "Paris 36" and what do you get?...VOILA! "Faubourg 36"! Therein lies the problem: Apparently, someone set out to make ONE movie...and ended up making a completely DIFFERENT one! This bizarre Paris/Faubourg dichotomy plagues the movie throughout, but particularly during the last half! Paris did, however, get off to a relatively good start...Showing a lot of promise, in a number of different areas: The interaction between lead characters seemed brisk and focused; the sets had a very authentic mid-30's Paris look and feel; Music that had just the right mix of melancholy, nostalgia and pre-war glibness and sung with just the right inflection and ring; plus, different engaging back stories....But it all starts sputtering about half way through. Paris spins out of control and becomes a total mess. Absolutely nothing works! I can't imagine what was going though Writer/Director Christophe Barratier's mind, as he pressed on with this project! As "Paris" progresses, the characters' actions became constantly more erratic, unpredictable and demonstrate a continually escalating degree of incongruity with the personality and motives of each character. Protagonists capriciously waltzed in and out of the movie, with little or no explanation or raison d'etre. Because of this, the last half of "Paris" takes on a deus ex machina tainted storyline much more akin to a fairy tale or the romantic daydreams of a 13 year-old Parisian girl. Maybe Paris would have been much easier to follow in the original French. The sub-titles are shamelessly below par. Only about 50% of the dialog actually appears on screen! Thusly, you end up missing HALF of the film! First Half = 8*, Last Half = 2*...OVERALL: 5*....ENJOY/DISFRUTELA?!?!?Any comments, questions or observations, in English or Español, are most welcome! KissEnglishPasto@Yahoo.com
krzysiektom
A very nice cinematic experience. Everything was top notch - direction, script, acting, singing, scenography and costumes. The film leaves a warm feeling despite presenting many dark sides of life in Fauborg (outskirt of Paris) in the 1930s, like fascism, workers' strikes, unemployment, marital betrayal, loneliness. The director incredibly managed to mix pathos and sentimentality with sarcasm and sardonic humor in the same scenes, which prevented the film from being corny. Includes probably the best written funeral scene ever in my opinion. The songs are not remarkable, with one exception - a song about love where the main female character is virtually declaring love to a man from the stage. The female is a revelation, talented and beautiful young actress with good singing voice. I will gladly watch the film again.
paty91
When i heard that the director from " Les Choristes" was releasing a new movie i thought it was a must see. And i was definitely right! the music is very good, the photography and the costumes are excellent and the actors too.Nora Arnezeder came as a big surprise to me, this unknown girl who has such a great voice, she was very good, and, of course, Gerard Jugnot, the great Monsieur Mathieu from " Les Choristes" was amazing again. The thing i most liked about the movie is that it keeps you entertained from beginning to end, you really want to keep watching and you never get bored. The songs take you to the 1930's as well as the scenarios.This movie is beautiful and definitely must be watched, it will definitely entertain you and you will enjoy good french cinema.
druid333-2
If this film had been produced 60 to 70 years ago,it probably would have been directed by Jean Renoir and starred Jean Gabin as one of the central figures. 'Faubourg 36' (or as it is being distributed in English speaking countries as 'Paris 36')is a film that takes place in Paris, just before world war 2,when political tensions were at a boiling point between left leaning French & their ultra conservative right wing counterpoint (which would eventually embrace the Nazi party in Germany,especially when Hitler marched into Paris in the 1940's). A (failing)theatrical troupe,bent on preserving their beloved theater tries to pull things back together,they get support from some of the locals (including an alleged Communist,who claims he was in the Red Brigade in Russia),a young lass trying to break into the singing profession,a (mostly)unfunny comic & enough well meaning persons to try and bring things together. A corrupt local political figure,who wants to do little more than bring the ruination of the theater also looms. The film is complimented by a cracker jack cast of French professionals who turn in a splendid job of acting. The screenplay, although something of an overstuffed sandwich of sorts,is still well played out. The film features several songs,most of which are performed by the cast,themselves. At times,this film has a Busby Berkley feel to it (which is not a bad thing). In French with English subtitles. Rated PG-13 by the MPAA,this film contains a bit of rude language,some suggestive material that parents of very young children may not appreciate,and some violence (but nothing too gory that could disturb some sensitive audiences). Well worth a look.
