Principal cast
Jean Gabin as Lieutenant Maréchal, Dita Parlo as Elsa, Pierre Fresnay as Captain de Boëldieu, Erich von Stroheim as Captain von Rauffenstein, and Julien Carette as Cartier, the Vaudeville Performer
Film 189 of 244 on the Screen Path
Grand Illusion
A Great Drama of Human Emotions
About the film
Grand Illusion at a glance.
Screen Path places this 1937 film at stop 189 in one curated journey through cinema. The learning experience adds context before you watch and deeper analysis after.
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.
Key craft credits
Christian Matras (director of photography), Marguerite Renoir (editor), Marthe Huguet (editor), Joseph Kosma (original music composer), and Eugène Lourié (production design)
- Director
- Jean Renoir
- Release
- 1937-06-18
- Runtime
- 114 minutes
- Genres
- Drama, History, and War
- Country
- France
- Quiz
- 50 questions
The Screen Path journey
Before. After. Remember.
The featured film is watched outside Screen Path. The app provides the learning experience around it: a guide, an analysis, and a quiz with explanations.
01
Before you watch
Start with a spoiler-free video guide to the context and filmmaking choices worth noticing.
Spoiler-free02
After the film
Return after watching for a deeper video analysis of craft, meaning, and legacy.
Contains spoilers03
Quiz yourself
Answer 50 questions with clear rationales designed to make the ideas stick.
50 questions in this journeyWant to try a complete journey on the web? The Citizen Kane page includes the spoiler-free guide, after-film analysis, and a sample quiz.
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