Jules and Jim

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Jules and Jim

Released Jan 23, 1962

1h 50m

Drama

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Popcornmeter

94%

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51 Reviews

89%

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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.

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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.

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Kevin Maher

Times (UK)

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

Rated: 5/5

Feb 4, 2022

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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

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Carrie Rickey

The Dissolve

A case study in romantic triangulation.

Rated: 5/5

Feb 18, 2014

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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

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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

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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

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Will G

A great French new wave film. It was made by Francois Truffaut. It was about two men, Jules and Jim, who both like a girl named Catherine. The scenes of France were great and I liked to practice my French.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

03/11/25

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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

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Isaiah Y

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

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

10/06/24

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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

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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

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harwee h

Truffaut's 5th best movie.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/22/23

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François Truffaut

Director

Jeanne Moreau

Catherine

Oskar Werner

Jules

Henri Serre

Jim

Marie Dubois

Thérèse

Vanna Urbino

Gilberte

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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)

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