King of Hearts: Alan Bates, Genevi�ve Bujold, Pierre Brasseur, Jean-Claude Brialy, Adolfo Celi, Fran�oise Christophe, Julien Guiomar, Micheline Presle, Michel Serrault, Jacques Balutin, Palau, Pier Paolo Capponi, Pierre Lhomme, Philippe de Broca, Fran�oise Javet, Michelle de Broca, Daniel Boulanger, Maurice Bessy: Amazon.ca: Video

Product Description

From Amazon.com

This film was a touchstone of the late 1960s, when it was seen as an antiwar allegory for a world in which madness seemed to reign. Of course, that would probably be true whenever this movie was shown, wouldn't it? Directed by Philippe de Broca and set during World War I, King of Hearts stars Alan Bates as a Scottish soldier separated from his unit in France. He wanders into a small French village that has been abandoned by its residents in the face of oncoming combat. Instead, the town is populated by the residents of a nearby insane asylum, whose keepers have fled--a fact that escapes the innocent soldier, who assumes these are the regular folks. A film that celebrates the innocence and wisdom of the insane, even as it questions who the real madmen are. --Marshall Fine

Tag this product

(What's this?)

Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items.

Customer Reviews

31 Reviews

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

Average Customer Review

4.8 out of 5 stars (31 customer reviews)

Share your thoughts with other customers:

Create your own review

Most helpful customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Ending Ever!, Jan 4 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: King of Hearts (Widescreen) (DVD)

This movie has the very best ending ever. I'd like to see someone try and find a more surprising, happier, funnier ending than this one. The loonies are in town and they've found their king and my heart. This movie takes the bag. It's my father's very favorite movie and one of mine. I definitely recommend this movie.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Report abuse

5.0 out of 5 stars Add-on?, Nov 23 2002

By

Geneva Hagen (Victoria, BC, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: King of Hearts (VHS Tape)

I, too, remember this as one of the all-time great movies. Reviewer John Robinson is right: The American theatre version stops with the hero standing at the gates of the city with a bird cage; there is no further dialogue. The French film tradition does not wrap stories up into such tidy packages as Hollywood does. Perhaps the American version of the film was cut to give it a more clearly defined finale.

BTW, John Robinson, if you want other reviewers to respond to you, you should give your email address!

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Report abuse

5.0 out of 5 stars A buck-naked skip with birdcage!, Oct 15 2002

By

Lisbeth West "Lisbeth West" (Loveland, CO, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: King of Hearts (Widescreen) (DVD)

This gem should hit many different emotions for the avid viewer. A true parade of carnival characters set in an antiwar theme -- this bit of royalty of the heart brings up aTHE enigma: Is the difference between psychosis and psychic just a paper-thin line of cultural subjectivism? Is the lunacy of blowing up yet another vacant city on the path to glory any different that skipping naked down a path with a birdcage in one's hand?

This film started the boomers reading subtitles and (hopefully) brought them out of their fears of foreign film. (Don't get the dubbed version, it lacks so much charm.) Its popularity had a great deal to do with the country's mass-consciousness about the Viet Nam war; but I hope it would have found the same audience without such a catalyst.

One feels like dancing in a fountain and blowing bubbles on the back of a bus after seeing this great flick. Keep a kazoo handy; you'll want to have something to toot after the film is over and you are left to your organized sanity!

Better yet, follow it up with the 1972 release of "The Ruling Class" and have yourself a truly insane evening of jocularity.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Report abuse

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review

› See all 31 customer reviews on Amazon.ca

Want to see more reviews on this item?

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 67 reviews 4.8 out of 5 stars

Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Enchanting fantasy; topical allegory; classic movie
A fairy tale set in a French town caught between the opposing armies of the First World War, "King of Hearts" has lost none of its beguiling charm in the 35 years since its... Read more

Published on Sep 3 2002 by R.L. Holly

4.0 out of 5 stars Is there something extra on this DVD?
King of Hearts was, in my younger and more vulnerable years, one of my favorite movies, but I had not seen it in many years. In fact, I'd rather forgotten about it. Read more