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Grand Illusion Overview:

Grand Illusion (1937) was a War - Drama Film directed by Jean Renoir and produced by Albert Pinkovitch and Frank Rollmer.

Academy Awards 1938 --- Ceremony Number 11 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best PictureRealization D'Art CinematographiqueNominated
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Grand Illusion BlogHub Articles:

Grand Illusion (1937)

By 4 Star Film Fan on Feb 11, 2016 From 4 Star Films

I’m not sure if it’s because I’ve been bred on a certain brand of war movie, but I naively went into Grand Illusion expecting a typical P.O.W. drama. In the back of my mind, I was even ready to compare this title to later works like Stalag 17 (1953) or The Great Escape (1963). Hone... Read full article

Grand Illusion (1937)

By 4 Star Film Fan on Feb 11, 2016 From 4 Star Films

I’m not sure if it’s because I’ve been bred on a certain brand of war movie, but I naively went into Grand Illusion expecting a typical P.O.W. drama. In the back of my mind, I was even ready to compare this title to later works like Stalag 17 (1953) or The Great Escape (1963). Hone... Read full article

Grand Illusion (1937)

By Beatrice on Oct 8, 2013 From Flickers in Time

Grand Illusion (“La grande illusion”) (1937) Directed by Jean Renoir Written by Jean Renoir and Charles Spaak 1937/France Réalisation d’art cinématographique (RAC) Repeat viewing #106 of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die IMDb users say 8.1/10; I say 10/10 I consider Jean ... Read full article

Grand Illusion

By Alyson on Dec 24, 2010 From The Best Picture Project

Before we talk about the film, I’d like to shine some light upon the director, Jean Renoir.  Born in Paris, he was the son of the impressionist painter Pierre Renoir.  In World War I, he fought in the French army, and earned a Croix de Guerre for his heroism that left him suffering from wounds t... Read full article

The Grand Illusion (1937, Jean Renoir)

on Dec 11, 2008 From The Stop Button

I can’t figure out who Renoir had in mind when he made Grand Illusion. It goes without saying he placed incredible trust in his audience, but his expectations are somewhat beyond anything else I’ve seen. Grand Illusion is a film with events–momentous, important events–but the... Read full article

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Grand Illusion Quotes:

No Quote for this film.
Grand Illusion Facts
The first foreign language film to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture (French).
The art director, 'Eugene Lourie', was the one who carved the nativity figures out of potatoes for the Christmas scene towards the film's end.
Frequently cited by Woody Allen as the finest picture ever made.
The battles in which Elsa's brothers died - Charleroi, Tannenberg and Liege - were all battles from 1914, the first year of the war. The Battle of Liège was the opening battle of the German invasion into Belgium, and the first battle of World War I. The Battle of Charleroi was fought on 21 August 1914 between the French and the Germans. The Battle of Tannenberg was in August 1914 and was fought between the Russians and the Germans.
The movie title "La Grande Illusion" is a reference to the pre-war book "The Great Illusion" by Norman Angell, which argued that war was outmoded, unscientific, and absurd. Though little-known today, it was a tremendous sensation when first published in 1913, and was often cited as evidence that a long European war "could not happen". Renoir aptly picks the title for his own work, knowing that his audience would recognize the reference.
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