Plot.
Poster of Is Paris Burning?

Is Paris Burning?

1966 · Film · 173 min

  • War
  • Drama
  • History

Plot

Near the end of World War II, General Dietrich von Choltitz receives orders to burn down Paris if it becomes clear the Allies are going to invade, or if he's unable to maintain control of the city. After much contemplation, Choltitz ignores orders, enraging the Germans and giving hope to various resistance factions that the city will be liberated. Choltitz, alongside Swedish diplomat Raoul Nordling, helps a leader organise his forces.

About Is Paris Burning?

Is Paris Burning? (French: Paris brûle-t-il ?) is a 1966 black-and-white epic war film about the liberation of Paris in August 1944 by the French Resistance and the Free French Forces during World War II. A French-American co-production, it was directed by French filmmaker René Clément, with a screenplay by Gore Vidal, Francis Ford Coppola, Jean Aurenche, Pierre Bost and Claude Brulé, adapted from the 1965 book of the same title by Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre. The film stars an international ensemble cast that includes French (Jean-Paul Belmondo, Alain Delon, Bruno Cremer, Pierre Vaneck, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Leslie Caron, Charles Boyer, Yves Montand), American (Orson Welles, Kirk Douglas, Glenn Ford, Robert Stack, Anthony Perkins, George Chakiris) and German (Gert Fröbe, Hannes Messemer, Ernst Fritz Fürbringer, Harry Meyen, Wolfgang Preiss) stars. The film was released in France on October 26, 1966, and in the United States on November 10, 1966. It received generally positive reviews, and was the fourth-most-popular film of the year in France for 1966. It was nominated for Best Cinematography (Black and White) and Academy Award for Best Art Direction at the 40th Academy Awards and a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score.

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Cast

  • Jean-Paul BelmondoYvon Morandat
  • Charles BoyerDoctor Monod
  • Leslie CaronFrançoise Labé
  • Jean-Pierre CasselLt. Henri Karcher
  • George ChakirisGI in Tank
  • Bruno CremerColonel Rol Tanguy
  • Claude DauphinColonel Lebel
  • Alain DelonJacques Chaban-Delmas
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