Le Dernier Métro (The Last Metro) poster & wallpaper
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Catherine Deneuve, Gérard Depardieu, Jean Poiret, Heinz Bennent, Andrea Ferreol ... see more see more... , Paulette Dubost , Sabine Haudepin , Jean-Louis Richard , Maurice Risch , Christian Baltauss , Pierre Belot , Marcel Berbert , Richard Bohringer , René Dupré , Jean-Pierre Klein , Franck Pasquier , Renata , Martine Simonet , Alain Tasma , Rose Thiery , Eva Truffaut , Jacob Weizbluth , Jessica Zucman , Laszlo Szabo , Jean-José Richer

The Last Metro is set virtually in its entirety in a crumbling French theatre. During the Nazi occupation, Jewish director Lucas Steiner (Heinz Bennent) hides in the basement of the theatre, while his... read more read more... wife Marion (Catherine Deneuve) stars in its latest production. Marion is enamored of leading man Bernard Granger (Gerard Depardieu), and he with her, but they resist temptation out of respect to her husband. When she is given a choice between loyalty to her husband and to her countrymen, her dilemma offers two logical solutions--both of which are acted out on stage during the play. This Pirandellian ending aside, The Last Metro is one of the few films to accurately capture the feeling of what it was like to live in Paris under the thumb of the Nazis. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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18 critics

PG, 2 hr. 15 min.

Directed by: François Truffaut

Release Date: June 1, 1980

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DVD Release Date: March 24, 2009

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Stats: 203 reviews

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Catherine Deneuve as Marion Steiner in "The Last Metro" Le Dernier Métro (The Last Metro) Le Dernier Métro (The Last Metro) "The Last Metro" cast and crew
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Flixster Reviews (203)

  • sanjurosamurai
    March 16, 2011
    sanjurosamurai
    a phenomenal film except for its two weaknesses, but those two are fairly big and really hold the film back from masterpiece status. One, at no point did i buy that marion and bernard were falling for each other, so this major plot element is completely unconvincing, and two, th... read moree end "monologue" where the "wrap up" is sort of flown through doesnt fit the brilliant tone and depth of the rest of the film. overall, its still a very excellent movie during the french resistance, which manages to use the resistance as a coincidental setting to the real story rather than getting lost in the wartime politics. very good.
  • hunterjt13
    February 10, 2011
    hunterjt13
    During the Nazi occupation of France, a theater struggles to survive against censorship and the various conflicts among the company.
    What I liked most about Truffaut's work here is his ability to link the external political conflict with the action of the stage production. This ... read moreisn't a play within a play for its own sake. Rather, when Granger's stage character says that love is both a joy and a painful, we understand that existence in occupied France is also both a joy and painful. These characters are happy to be alive but unhappy with how they are living.
    On the other hand, it's occasionally meandering, as though Truffaut knows that Nazis are often over-used in film. I remember watching Bent and thinking, "I get it; they were pure evil. What else you got to say?" Truffaut seems to recognize this problem, but he isn't able to fill the void with other more compelling action. What he does find is a rather simple romantic melodrama, and though it's well-acted by Depardieu and Deneuve, it ultimately falls short.
    Overall, The Last Metro is a good, but not great, film.
  • paulsandberg
    December 18, 2010
    paulsandberg
    exceedingly well filmed, with many continuous long dolly shots, this film about a theatre in occupied Paris during WWII boasts Catherine Deneuve and Gerard Depardieu (or as we call him around our house Dippity Do) as the main charactors.

    However, the real stars of this film ar... read moree the many supporting actors and the cinematography. The first third of the film is stunning, aptly showing all the hustle and bustle backstage at the theatre. All the movement and extras entering and exiting the screen are like an intricate dance as the camera, in a long single shot, follows dippity do as he enters the theatre.

    There is a wonderful scene shortly thereafter where dippity do is talking to a friend in a bar - he looks out through the bars' window and sees Deneuve exiting the stage door across the street - the camera then zooms in and follows Deveuve - wonderful!

    However, the skill and care taken for these shots is not exhibited in the script. There is an interesting and potentially poignant story concerning jew hunting, jew harboring, and attempts made at an escape into Spain, but the sense of urgencey and drama somehow just isn't as gripping as it should have been.

    The film also lacks subtlety in some regards - for example, the theatre critic who is a Nazi toady, parroting the company line for favor. He gives an absurd anti-jew speach over the radio that would have made Tokyo Rose blush. I will concede that it was entirely possible for something like that to have occured, but here it stopped the narrative flow and seemed simply out of place.

    There is also to consider the almost absurd performance by dippity do. Perhaps the script was responsible, but he goes from laughable rogue hitting on anything in a skirt, to a profession of undying love for a certain charactor. The two seem diametrically opposed. But what is far worse is his wooden anti Nazi portrayal. Taken way over the top to the point where he would not let his hat be checked because there were Nazi hats in the cloakroom. Prety overt behavior for someone suspected of being in the resistance.

    Towards the film's end there is a potential crises that is never resolved - just simply brushed aside as the film switches gears and becomes some kind of historical movielogue. It then goes on to further shatter the illusion that we are watching something transpire in real time by announcing that the story is in need of an epilogue - which it then provides with a slight of hand twist that, while satisfying, doesn't repair the damage.

    Throughout the film I got the sense that this was some kind of homage to an older style of both filmmaking and story telling - as if the sensabilities were right out of the 50's. Intentional or not, it was disquieting for me.

    I'd give this film a 10 for its camera work, a 9 for most of the acting, especially the bit parts, like that of the stage manager and the critic, but a 5 for direction and script - it just felt as if the passion was missing.

    In a final note: Mrs. Henderson Presents is also about the theatre during WWII - they take different tacks, but oddly, the British one was more entertaining and came off as more sure of its voice - even though the french film had the occupation going for it.
  • bookmunki
    May 21, 2009
    bookmunki
    for some reason, i am partial to occupation films. it's nice to see depardieu as a young, sexy beast. deneuve's reserved and restrained performance is unbroken until the film's ending. the pair are an incredible acting duo, which encourages me to soon see techine's homage to thi... read mores film.
  • codyfranklin2
    September 20, 2009
    codyfranklin2
    A enjoyable,but not great Truffaut film. It's about a French theater trying to run a play during Nazi occupation. I enjoyed the acting,cinematography, and the homage to the art of the theater. A little too long and I wish the love story would have been up front a little more. Gre... read moreat performances all around and Depardieu is charming and Deneuve is beautiful. This is really Denuve's film, she controls the pace and as a viewer you do become enamored of her. Very fast paced and Nestor's photography is beautiful,especially on Criterion Blu-Ray.
  • Dracula787
    May 16, 2009
    Dracula787
    I?ve always been a fan of the French director François Truffaut, but I was mainly familiar with his early New Wave work like The 400 Blows and Jules Et Jim. I decided it was about time that I checked out one of his later work, and since Criterion just put out a pristine DVD/Blu-... read moreRay of this long unavailable film, now seemed like the perfect time to give this a rent. The film is set in Nazi occupied France and deals with a theater that?s trying to operate under the assumption that ?the show must go on.? Their main problem is that the main director of the theater is a Jewish who refuses to flee the country. This director goes into hiding in the theater?s attic and secretly directs the play through notes. That?s the main plotline, but there?s an entire ensemble cast here each with their own story. The film is also shot beautifully, the Criterion people have put a lot of love into the restoration of this classic. As satisfying as the movie was, I was sort of hoping the story would take itself to another level at one point and it never really does, the whole thing just sort of ends. Still, great film.
  • littlecharmer1959
    February 18, 2008
    littlecharmer1959
    A good Traffaut film with strong performances from Deneuve and Depardieu.
  • fb33703014
    February 22, 2012
    fb33703014
    Nothing too stylish, just has really wonderful, moving performances (Heinz Bennet is the revelation here, to quote the film's own asshole Nazi critic, though Deneuve is also very good, especially when her character has to hide something in a conversation), and a fine sense of the... read more period and what 'theater' means. One of the few films that can be both really hopeful and really dark. And it has one of the most charmingly subversive endings in modern cinema.
  • sherwinliu1
    November 13, 2011
    sherwinliu1
    I was glad to rewatch this lush and colorful Truffaut movie from 1980 about a French theater during the Nazi occupation, featuring Deneuve and a young Depardieu. Looking forward to listening to the commentary track on the Criterion disc.
  • HuskersNC949597
    January 15, 2011
    HuskersNC949597
    Ranking right up there with "Top Secret!" among the best movies on the French Resistance. OK, so those are the only 2 I've seen.

View All Le Dernier Métro (The Last Metro) Reviews

Critic Reviews

Richard Brody
March 21, 2011
Richard Brody, New Yorker

Truffaut balances his hopeful plot on a tightrope of coincidences and narrow escapes that horrifically suggest the abyss that engulfed so many men and women of the artistic and political underground. ... Full Review

Vincent Canby
May 20, 2003
Vincent Canby, New York Times

A dazzlingly subversive work. Full Review

Dave Kehr
January 1, 2000
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

At times, the film seems to be about the reasons for its own emptiness. Full Review

Jason Morgan
April 16, 2009
Jason Morgan, Filmcritic.com

a simple melodrama that misses its marks and shies away from any potential substance. Full Review

James Kendrick
April 6, 2009
James Kendrick, Q Network Film Desk

although not one of Truffaut's strongest works, it is nevertheless a striking and engaging film, one that reflects the great filmmaker's love of artistic creation and its role in maintaining humanity Full Review

Fernando F. Croce
March 24, 2009
Fernando F. Croce, Slant Magazine

As a portrait of a time, Last Metro is a warmly performed and deftly shot trifle. Full Review

Peter Canavese
March 22, 2009
Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews

A loving account of the literal and figurative romance of the stage, even under the most trying of social circumstances. [Blu-ray] Full Review

Dennis Schwartz
September 15, 2008
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

The muted colors give the film a haunted look, like it was a film made in the 1940s. Full Review

Jeffrey M. Anderson
June 21, 2004
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

Accomplished and beautifully-done. Full Review

Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
January 29, 2004
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice

The Last Metro puts on vivid display Francois Truffaut's humanism and artistic craft. Full Review

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