Grand Illusion

Grand Illusion

A Great Drama of Human Emotions

NR 1937 · 114 min · ★ 7.9 · Drama, History, War

A group of French soldiers, including the patrician Captain de Boeldieu and the working-class Lieutenant Maréchal, grapple with their own class differences after being captured and held in a World War I German prison camp. When the men are transferred to a high-security fortress, they must concoct a plan to escape beneath the watchful eye of aristocratic German officer von Rauffenstein, who has formed an unexpected bond with de Boeldieu.

Directed by Jean Renoir · Written by Charles Spaak

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Cast

Jean Gabin Lieutenant Maréchal
Dita Parlo Elsa
Pierre Fresnay Captain de Boëldieu
Erich von Stroheim Captain von Rauffenstein
Julien Carette Cartier, the Vaudeville Performer
Georges Péclet Officer
Werner Florian Sergeant Arthur
Jean Dasté Teacher
Sylvain Itkine Lieutenant Demolder
Gaston Modot Engineer
Marcel Dalio Lieutenant Rosenthal
Jacques Becker British Officer (uncredited)

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