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Frantz

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Overview

Set in Germany and France in the immediate aftermath of the First World War, (1914-1918), Frantz recalls the mourning period that follows great national tragedies as seen through the eyes of the war’s “lost generation”: Anna (21 year-old Paula Beer in a breakthrough performance), a bereft young German woman whose fiancé, Frantz, was killed during trench warfare, and Adrien (Pierre Niney, Yves Saint Laurent), a French veteran of the war who shows up mysteriously in her town, placing flowers on Frantz’s grave. Adrien’s presence is met with resistance by the small community still reeling from Germany’s defeat, yet Anna gradually gets closer to the handsome and melancholy young man, as she learns of his deep friendship with Frantz, conjured up in evocative flashbacks. What follows is a surprising exploration of how Ozon’s characters’ wrestle with their conflicting feelings – survivor’s guilt, anger at one’s losses, the overriding desire for happiness despite everything that has come before, and the longing for sexual, romantic and familial attachments. Ozon drew his inspiration from a post-WWI play by Maurice Rostand that inspired the 1932 film adaption by Ernst Lubitsch under the title Broken Lullaby.

Reactions, Awards & Festivals

NYT Critics' Pick. "Lyrically seductive."

Stephen Holden

The New York Times

“Exquisite and haunting…one of the talented director Francois Ozon’s very best films.”

Dennis Dermody

Paper

"A richly imagined and superbly assembled period piece."

Boyd van Hoeij

The Hollywood Reporter

"Astonishingly beautiful and inquisitive. it’s impossible to deny the sheer narrative sophistication.”

Eric Kohn

Indiewire

“Intellectually stimulating and emotionally satisfying.”

Jonathan Romney

Screen Daily

Winner - Top Foreign Film, 2017 National Board Review

Winner - Best Cinematography (Pascal Marti), 42nd César Awards

Winner - Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best Young Actress (Paula Beer), 2016 Venice Film Festival

Winner - Grand Jury Prize for Best Performance International Narrative (Paula Beer) & Best International Feature, 2017 Gasparilla International Film Festival

Official Selection - 2017 Film Society of Lincoln Center's Rendez-Vous with French Cinema

Spotlight Selection - 2017 Sundance Film Festival

Official Selection - 2016

Telluride Film FestivalOfficial Selection - 2016 Toronto International Film Festival

Cast & Crew
  • Anna Hoffmeister : Paula Beer
  • Adrien Rivoire : Pierre Niney
  • Doktor Hoffmeister : Ernst Stötzner
  • Magda Hoffmeister : Marie Gruber
  • Kreutz : Johann von Bülow
  • Frantz Hoffmeister : Anton von Lucke
  • Adrien's Mother : Cyrielle Clair
  • Fanny : Alice de Lencquesaing
  • Director : François Ozon
  • Screenplay : François Ozon
  • In Collaboration with : Philippe Piazzo 
  • Producers : Eric Altmayer & Nicolas Altmayer
  • Co-Producers : Stefan Arndt & Uwe Schott
  • Director of Photography : Pascal Marti
  • Editor : Laure Gardette
  • Production Design : Michel Barthélémy 
  • Costume Design : Pascaline Chavanne
  • Sound : Martin Boissau
  • Original Score : Philippe Rombi
Technical Info
  • Production Year : 2016
  • Release Date : March 15, 2017
  • Countries of Production : France, Germany
  • Languages : French, German
  • Running Time : 114 Minutes
  • Screen Ratio : 2.35:1
  • Sound : Dolby SR/SRD
  • Color : B&W
  • Rating : PG-13 Thematic Elements Including Brief War Violence