IMDb RATING
6.9/10
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A glimpse at the life of French singer Serge Gainsbourg, from growing up in 1940s Nazi-occupied Paris through his successful song-writing years in the 1960s to his death in 1991 at the age o... Read allA glimpse at the life of French singer Serge Gainsbourg, from growing up in 1940s Nazi-occupied Paris through his successful song-writing years in the 1960s to his death in 1991 at the age of 62.A glimpse at the life of French singer Serge Gainsbourg, from growing up in 1940s Nazi-occupied Paris through his successful song-writing years in the 1960s to his death in 1991 at the age of 62.
- Awards
- 7 wins & 9 nominations
Dinara Drukarova
- Olga Ginsburg (la mère)
- (as Dinara Droukarova)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe project was originally envisioned with Serge Gainsbourg's real life daughter, actress Charlotte Gainsbourg to play him in keeping with the film's surreal and fairytale-esque tone. Six months into rehearsals and preparation Gainsbourg pulled out telling director Joann Sfar, it was proving too emotionally painful and he would have to make his "beautiful film" without her. Sfar had always approached the film with her in mind and was ready to abort the project when fate lead him to Eric Elmosnino.
- GoofsThe young Gainsbourg is shown drawing left-handed, but the adult Gainsbourg becomes right-handed.
- Quotes
Serge Gainsbourg: [after a man tips him while he plays the piano] What are you fucking kidding me? I'm not a jukebox!
- Crazy credits"Pour Lucy" i.e. this was Lucy Gordon 's last film.
- Alternate versionsEngland is the first territory to release a new cut of the film, running 14 minutes shorter than the previous version and is Joann Sfar's preferred one. Changes include -
- Deletion of the scene where young Serge pleads in vain for his mother to buy him a gun to play with, even attempting to bribe her by saying he'll work harder on the piano. This precedes the scene where he steals the gun from the shop.
- Deletion of the scene where Serge and Boris Vian walk to his apartment and the two lie in the road in an effort to stop a cab. While they wait Serge reveals he has a double that follows him around to which Vian replies his is a werewolf. However two policemen soon cut the conversation short. (This precedes Serge arriving at Boris's apartment and explains a later scene where a drunken Serge lies in the road before having the police escort to his concert)
- Longer scene of the "Baby Pop" groupies, as Gainsbourg wakes up in bed with two naked women as his Mug joyously tosses bank statements at him revealing how rich he is from "Poupée de cire, poupée de son" alone! This is the original lead in to "Qui Est In Qui Est Out".
- The groupies and party to "Qui Est In Qui Est Out" is cut short, removing Serge narrating about "the mouth being the primary sexual organ". His narration reveals the girls in the room he has slept with and how he was with them. It reveals Gainsbourg's occasional cruel streak and precedes the angry neighbor banging on the door.
- After Gainsbourg recites La Marseillaise at the press conference, we then see young Serge repeating it and triumphantly raising his fist to the audience.
- Deletion of a short exchange in the nightclub when a reveller comments to Gainsbourg about him being parodied on a French TV show. The new version removes these lines either because the show is unknown outside of France or because it doesn't tie in as being the night Gainsbourg met his wife Bambou as that TV show wouldn't air until years later. Sfar has said this new version will be the one further released worldwide.
- ConnectionsFeatured in De wereld draait door: Episode #5.128 (2010)
Featured review
This is a film that makes no bones about the ultimate squandering of Serge Gainsbourg's talents in a drink - induced decline but at the same time shows the creative and cultural force that his very surname still brings to mind for most French people . The movie brings out particularly well the smoky atmosphere of jazz clubs and gigs where the young Serge first plied his musicality in the 1950s. The phases of his life, from young Jewish boy in occupied France through his creative life and personal life ( for instance )amours with such as Brigitte Bardot and Jane Birkin in the 1960s are dizzily but effectively handled . There is some attempt by Director Sfar to portray Gainsbourg , in late career , as something of an anti- intolerance man of principle but the overall impression given is of an imaginative , somewhat amoral figure whose life was ultimately an example of artistic decline and hedonistic self-indulgence . The film is rather long but, overall , sustains interest well . The main roles are all played well by the actors ,including the female leads Laetitia Casta and the late Lucy Gordon , and the cartoon - like features of the movie , such as Serge's giant alter-ego , impressionistically contribute something positive to the story . Viewers from Anglophone countries who will best remember Gainsbourg as the singing half of the 1969 heavy- breathing pop hit " Je t'aime moi non plus " may still leave the cinema wondering what really was the artistic importance of Serge . Yet they will nonetheless , on the strength of this bio-pic , carry away an image of the principal character as an unforgettable personality .French people , on the other hand , who already regard him as a cultural icon and , in their terms ,as a genius will not need this movie to make up their minds about Serge Gainsbourg .
- angus-logan
- Aug 17, 2010
- Permalink
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official sites
- Languages
- Also known as
- Gainsbourg
- Filming locations
- Rue de Verneuil, Paris 6, Paris, France(Gainsbourg's house)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- €11,500,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $233,007
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $25,189
- Sep 4, 2011
- Gross worldwide
- $12,220,456
- Runtime2 hours 15 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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Top Gap
By what name was Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life (2010) officially released in Canada in English?
Answer