{"id":2902,"date":"2017-04-06T18:38:11","date_gmt":"2017-04-06T18:38:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/?p=2902"},"modified":"2018-08-30T20:23:13","modified_gmt":"2018-08-30T20:23:13","slug":"theatre-in-film-the-last-metro-1980","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/theatre-in-film-the-last-metro-1980\/","title":{"rendered":"Theatre in Film: The Last Metro (1980)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"fusion-one-full fusion-layout-column fusion-column-last fusion-spacing-yes section-header-post\" style=\"margin-top:;margin-bottom:;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper\"><h3>Theatre in Film: <em>The Last Metro<\/em> (1980)<\/h3>\n<font size=\"2\" color=\"grey\"><span style=\"border:1px solid ;-webkit-border-radius:50%;-moz-border-radius:50%;border-radius:50%;-moz-box-shadow: 0 0 3px rgba(0,0,0,.3);-webkit-box-shadow: 0 0 3px rgba(0,0,0,.3);box-shadow: 0 0 3px rgba(0,0,0,.3);margin-right:25px;float:left;\" class=\"fusion-imageframe imageframe-glow imageframe-1 hover-type-none author-image\"><a class=\"fusion-no-lightbox\" href=\"http:\/\/performerstuff.com\" target=\"_self\"> <img src=\"http:\/\/mgs.performerstuff.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/authorimage.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"img-responsive\" style=\"-webkit-border-radius:50%;-moz-border-radius:50%;border-radius:50%;\"\/><\/a><\/span><p>Written by Ashleigh Gardner<\/p>\n<p>April 4, 2017<\/p>\n<\/font><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><div class=\"fusion-one-full fusion-layout-column fusion-column-last fusion-spacing-yes section-body-post\" style=\"margin-top:;margin-bottom:;\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper\"><p style=\"text-align: left;\">Welcome to Part VIII of Theatre in Film, our weekly feature on a film that depicts a life in the\u00a0theatre. In Part VIII, we feature films where characters in the\u00a0theatre\u00a0must overcome a struggle in their personal lives while also managing the world of performance. This week, we feature the 1980 French film\u00a0<em>The Last Metro\u00a0<\/em>(<i>Le Dernier M\u00e9tro<\/i>), a film that tells the story of a Christian woman who hides her Jewish husband in the basement of the\u00a0theatre\u00a0during the Nazi occupation of Paris in 1942.<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\"><em>The Last Metro<\/em> (1980)<\/h4>\n<br><div align=\"center\"><div class=\"fusion-video fusion-youtube\" style=\"max-width:600px;max-height:350px;\"><div class=\"video-shortcode\"><iframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0N2BfFD1QTo?wmode=transparent&autoplay=0\" width=\"600\" height=\"350\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div><\/div><\/div><br><p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Director: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fran\u00e7ois Truffaut<br \/>\n<\/span><b>Starring:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Catherine Deneuve, G\u00e9rard Depardieu, Heinz Bennent, Jean Poiret, and Jean-Louis Richard<\/span><\/p>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\">What happens:<\/h4>\n<br><p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">During the German occupation of Paris in World War II, Jewish<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0theatre director, Lucas Steiner (Heinz Bennent), and his Christian wife, Marion Steiner (Catherine Deneuve), operate a theatre under the pretense that the theatre does not allow Jewish artists to work within its walls. The catch? Lucas must live and work entirely underground beneath the theatre. Marion struggles to keep Lucas hidden from the Nazi soldiers and the Gestapo, all the while telling everyone that he has fled France. Lucas, however, has been secretly directing the play through a proxy director, Jean-Loup Cottins (Jean Poiret).<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When Bernard Granger (<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">G\u00e9rard Depardieu<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">), a local actor who happens to be Christian, is cast in the theatre\u2019s new production, he begins a small affair with Marion. Marion tries to maintain her love for her husband, but flounders as Bernard, who does not know about Lucas, insists on wooing her. During rehearsals, the couple grows closer and intensifies to a point where Lucas cannot stand to be underneath the theatre, watching them, for any longer. He leaves and is captured. Fortunately, the end of the war is not far off, and he is returned to Paris and his theatre, and Marion severs her relationship with Bernard, continuing her work as an actress on the stage.<\/span><\/p>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\">Why it matters:<\/h4>\n<br><p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Last Metro <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">isn\u2019t a grand sweeping tale of escaping capture by the Nazis. It\u2019s not an action-adventure film with an outstanding score punctuated by guns a-blazing and <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Indiana Jones<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">-esque treasure hunts. It\u2019s a quaint portrait of a theatre family trying to live normal lives despite the rampant persecution of Jews in France, and it\u2019s familiar in its quaintness &#8212; small vignettes framing compassionate exchanges, passionate relationships, and jarring arguments comprise the narrative of Marion\u2019s survival as an actress-turned-business woman in Nazi Germany.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The most prominent element in Truffaut\u2019s film is the human element, not the militaristic identity of the imposing Nazi party. Marion, Lucas, Bernard, and Jean-Loup operate as vulnerable human beings, falling prey to temptations, using humor to comfort one another, and sharing personal memories. It\u2019s <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">these <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">things that shape their lives and personalities rather than the current unfortunate predicament they find themselves in.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Additionally, Marion is a sympathetic soul. She must be to hide her Jewish husband and risk her life for his safety, even after he comes after her for flirting with Bernard &#8212; and then falls down the stairs of the basement. Following his fall, she puts him to bed and feeds him soup and tea, understanding that his outburst was probably caused by the stress of being locked downstairs for over a year. She even invites a young Jewish girl into the theatre to drop off sewing samples after she learns that the girl wants to sew costumes for the theatre. Marion invites the girl to come back, fully knowing that if the theatre is inspected and is caught with Jews working within its walls, Marion and the rest of her staff could be arrested and the theatre shut down. Just like <\/span><span style=\"text-decoration: underline; color: #ba9bc9;\"><strong><a style=\"color: #ba9bc9;\" href=\"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/theatre-in-film-to-be-or-not-to-be-1983\/\"><i>To Be Or Not To Be<\/i><\/a><\/strong><\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, The Last Metro <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">shows us that the theatre has always been a haven for those who are persecuted.<\/span><\/p>\n<br><p style=\"text-align: left;\">This film is the third film in\u00a0Part VIII. See below for the other films\u00a0in Part VIII.<\/p>\n<ul style=\"text-align: left;\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/theatre-in-film-birdman-or-the-unexpected-virtue-of-ignorance-%ef%bb%bf2014\/\"><em><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)\u00a0(2014)<\/span><\/em><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/theatre-in-film-a-life-in-the-theatre-1993\/\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>A Life in the Theatre\u00a0<\/em>(1993)<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><em>Opening Night\u00a0<\/em>(2016)\u00a0(<em>Coming soon.<\/em>)<\/li>\n<li><em>The Tall Guy\u00a0<\/em>(1989)\u00a0(<em>Coming soon.<\/em>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Want to start with\u00a0<strong>Part I<\/strong>? Begin with\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><em><a href=\"http:\/\/mgs.performerstuff.com\/?p=133\">42nd Street\u00a0<\/a><\/em>(1933)<\/strong><\/span>.<br \/>\nMiss\u00a0<strong>Part II<\/strong>?\u00a0Check out\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/theatre-in-film-series-the-band-wagon-1953\/\"><strong><em>The Band Wagon<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0<strong>(1953)<\/strong><\/a><\/span>.<br \/>\nNeed a refresh for\u00a0<strong>Part III<\/strong>? Start with\u00a0our feature on\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><em><a href=\"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/theatre-in-film-series-all-that-jazz-1979\/\">All That Jazz\u00a0<\/a><\/em><\/strong><strong>(1979)<\/strong><\/span>.<br \/>\nHow about a recap from\u00a0<strong>Part IV<\/strong>? Jump into\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/theatre-in-film-a-chorus-of-disapproval-1989\/\"><strong><em>A Chorus of Disapproval\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/a><strong>(1989)<\/strong><\/span>.<br \/>\nCheck out\u00a0<strong>Part V<\/strong><em>,\u00a0<\/em>and start with\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/theatre-in-film-an-awfully-big-adventure-1995\/\"><em><strong>An Awfully Big Adventure\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><strong>(1995)<\/strong><\/a><\/span>.<br \/>\nStart reading\u00a0<strong>Part VI<\/strong>\u00a0with\u00a0<span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/theatre-in-film-camp-2003\/\">Camp\u00a0<\/a><\/strong><\/em><strong>(2003)<\/strong><\/span>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><hr \/>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: left;\"><em><strong>Ashleigh Gardner<\/strong>\u00a0received her AA in Theatre\/Drama\/Dramatic Arts\u00a0from Valencia College and\u00a0her Bachelors Degree in English Literature and\u00a0Masters Degree in Literary, Cultural, and Textual Studies from\u00a0the University of Central Florida. She is a playwright, an actor, and PerformerStuff.com\u2019s Editor.\u00a0<\/em><\/h5>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: left;\">Thumbnail image from\u00a0<em><i>Le Dernier M\u00e9tro.\u00a0<\/i><\/em>Copyright United Artists Classics, 1980.<\/h5>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" [...]","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2913,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[259,265],"tags":[160,80,128,14,105],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2902"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2902"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2902\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2913"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2902"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2902"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2902"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}