Jules and Jim

Play trailer

Jules and Jim

Released Jan 23, 1962

1h 50m

Drama

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

94%

Tomatometer

51 Reviews

89%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

In the carefree days before World War I, introverted Austrian author Jules (Oskar Werner) strikes up a friendship with the exuberant Frenchman Jim (Henri Serre). Both men fall for the impulsive and beautiful Catherine (Jeanne Moreau), but it's Jules who wins her hand. After the war, Jim visits Jules, Catherine and their daughter in their Austrian home and discovers not only that his feelings for Catherine are unchanged, but also that they're reciprocated.

Critics Consensus

Francois Truffaut's arguable masterpiece in a filmography full of masterpieces ready to be argued for, Jules and Jim is an eternal ode to boundless love.

Read Critics Reviews

Kevin Maher

Times (UK)

This is a near-perfect film from François Truffaut...

Rated: 5/5

Feb 4, 2022

Full Review

Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

There is something very literary about the film, with dialogue line-readings that often sound like the voiceover narration by Michel Subor.

Rated: 5/5

Feb 2, 2022

Full Review

Carrie Rickey

The Dissolve

A case study in romantic triangulation.

Rated: 5/5

Feb 18, 2014

Full Review

Daniel Allen

Loud and Clear Reviews

A film where eccentric, young Parisians are dragged down by adulthood and other complications... 60 years on, Jules et Jim remains one of the definitive works of the French New Wave.

Rated: 4.5/5

Jul 25, 2024

Full Review

Justine Smith

Vague Visages

n the male dominated world of the French New Wave, Catherine in François Truffaut’s Jules and Jim stands out as a mysterious and particularly beguiling female presence.

Nov 21, 2023

Full Review

Pauline Kael

Partisan Review

Jules and Jim is the most exciting movie made in the West since L’Avventura and Breathless and Truffaut’s earlier Shoot the Piano Player; because of the beauty and warmth of its images, it is a richer, a more satisfying film than any of them.

Sep 11, 2023

Full Review

Read all reviews

Evan B

An incredible film that revels in the immediate joys of the world - friendship, eros, fun and youth - in order to convey a tragic irony: love comes with a cost. The friendship of the titular characters is charming, Catherine is simultaneously beguiling and terrifying, and at the end I was left wondering what exactly happened, why, and whether the Gallic or Teutonic mindset won out as a worldview... A must-see!

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/06/25

Full Review

Isaiah Y

Amazing direction by Truffaut with probably Jeanne Moreau’s greatest performance

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

10/06/24

Full Review

julie b

Playful but also Trojan horses some melancholy. Reminded me a bit of Passages (2023). The narration, music, and visuals (e.g., freeze frames) are fun, and the characters are captivating (Queen Catherine!!!). Sometimes it moves at too frantic a pace to allow you, or the characters, to sit in the meaning and emotions.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

09/23/24

Full Review

elana k

I love Jeanne Moreau 😭 I haven’t seen enough of Truffaut's filmography, but Jules et Jim is French New Wave cinema in its most elevated form. I've seen it three times. The first time for my education, the second time to go deeper into the story, the third for pure viewing pleasure.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

05/28/24

Full Review

harwee h

Truffaut's 5th best movie.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/22/23

Full Review

Ben W

Hello. Rotten tomatoes machine does not allow me to delete reviews... but consider this a deleted review. I opted for three stars , as a compromise- it's again not my review. Farewell.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

11/23/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

François Truffaut

Director

Jeanne Moreau

Catherine

Oskar Werner

Jules

Henri Serre

Jim

Marie Dubois

Thérèse

Vanna Urbino

Gilberte

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

Eva

64%

56%

Eva

Watchlist

The Cousins

94%

81%

The Cousins

Watchlist

Walk on the Wild Side

60%

60%

Walk on the Wild Side

Watchlist

The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone

0%

58%

The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone

Watchlist

A Kind of Loving

93%

86%

A Kind of Loving

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Lance Henriksen’s Five Favorite Films

View more photos

Synopsis

In the carefree days before World War I, introverted Austrian author Jules (Oskar Werner) strikes up a friendship with the exuberant Frenchman Jim (Henri Serre). Both men fall for the impulsive and beautiful Catherine (Jeanne Moreau), but it's Jules who wins her hand. After the war, Jim visits Jules, Catherine and their daughter in their Austrian home and discovers not only that his feelings for Catherine are unchanged, but also that they're reciprocated.

Director: François Truffaut
Producer: Marcel Berbert
Screenwriter: Henri-Pierre Roché, François Truffaut, Jean Gruault, François Truffaut
Distributor: Alpha Filmes, Janus Films, Criterion Collection
Production Co: Les Films du Carrosse
Genre: Drama
Original Language: French (France)
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 23, 1962, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 23, 2017
Runtime: 1h 50m
Sound Mix: Mono
Aspect Ratio: 35mm, Scope (2.35:1)

Most Popular at Home Now