dir. Claude Lelouch
In typical Lelouch style, this film mixes a variety of genres but ultimately turns into a love story that brings together a man and a woman from different social backgrounds. The director himself describes it as “a film about friendship but it's especially a film about the women's revolution. It was a time where women were demanding equality with men. It was a period where women had become conscious that men were a little bit old-fashioned and that it was time to say so. So it's kind of the story of the last macho. This was a period that I knew very well. I've always made films based on my observation on the mood of the moment. This was a film that corresponded to my relationships with women at the time. I was trying to express what they wanted to say to me.” The movie was filmed in the winter of 1973, with the Paris episodes shot in black and white, and the flashbacks in Cannes done in color.
There was a misguided and tacky American remake in 1987 where Lelouch made a cameo appearance.
Many thanks to Lois for sharing her Paris pictures with me.
Simon (Lino Ventura) and two other inmates get an early release from prison on New Year’s Eve. They get a shared taxi ride to their respective domiciles.
The first inmate gets dropped off near the Grand Rex, 1 Boulevard Poissonnière, Paris, France. It’s a cinema and concert venue that opened in 1932 and is one of the largest in Paris. It was designated as a historical monument in 1981.
The second inmate is dropped off near Chez Bebert – Still searching for this location. It was a popular restaurant chain specialized in Moroccan cuisine. There were reportedly seven of these in Paris in the past but only two had survived by 2000 – one at 71 Boulevard du Montparnasse and another at 10 Boulevard des Batignolles. A third restaurant opened at 277 Boulevard Pereire in 2001. It looks the closest to the one in the film but apparently it didn’t exist in the 1970s. The Montparnasse restaurant is the only that is still open, the other two closed in the early 2010s. The addresses of the other Chez Bebert restaurants are unknown to me.
Simon does his holiday shopping – Hédiard, 21 Place de la Madeleine, Paris, France. It was a luxury food store established in 1850s when Ferdinand Hédiard introduced Parisians to the joys of exotic fruits. The brand was also famous for its great selection of jams, marmalades, oils, spices and wines. The company filed for bankruptcy in 2013, and the store closed sometime after 2014.
Simon’s apartment – 205 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris, France.
Simon’s looking out the window to see if he’s being watched – Avenue Hoche at Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris, France.
Simon comes to see his friend Michou but misses him – Chez Michou, 80 Rue des Martyres, Paris, France. It was a famous drag cabaret founded in 1956 by Michel Catty, known simply as Michou. The club is said to have inspired the French stage hit La Cage aux folles, made into film in 1978 and remade by Mike Nichols as Birdcage in 1996.
Michou was friends with many celebrities and the singer Mireille Mathieu makes a cameo appearance in the film.
After Michou’s death in 2020, the club was plagued with financial difficulties and had to close in 2024.
Simon finally catches up with Michou (who plays himself) near the end of the film.
Charlot (Charles Gérard) arrives in Cannes – Cannes Station, 4 Place de la Gare, Cannes, France.
The version seen in the film was the old Cannes station.
The work on a new station started in 1962. You can see the construction going on around the station in the scene when Simon arrives in Cannes.
The old station building was subsequently replaced by the present structure in 1975. There are no open platforms anymore and the rail line is mostly underground now.
Charlot puts the newly acquired car in a garage – 23 Boulevard Jean Hibert, Cannes, France.
Simon’s hotel – Carlton, 58 Boulevard de la Croisette, Cannes, France. It was built by Swiss developer Henri Ruhl in 1909-1910 and on 30th January 1911. The hotel was such a big success that the owner acquired the adjoining Hotel de la Plage, on its western side, and demolished it for construction of a new wing from 1912 to 1913, which doubled the hotel's size and gave it its present form.
The Carlton isn't really shown outside except this brief moment.
The jewelry store that Simon and Charlot are planning to rob – 61 Boulevard de la Croisette, Cannes, France. The store was Van Cleef & Arpels which has since moved to 17 Boulevard de la Croisette. It’s a Ralph Lauren store now.
Simon gets interested in the antique shop next door and its owner Françoise (Françoise Fabian) – 61 Boulevard de la Croisette.
While dining with Charlot, Simon overhears a conversation between Françoise and Madam Felix (Lilo) about an antique table. The scene was reportedly filmed at the real Felix restaurant, 63 Boulevard de la Croisette. Founded by Felix Cenci in 1953, the restaurant became famous and was patronized by many celebrities including Pablo Picasso, Grace Kelly and others. I was unable to find any photos of the restaurant’s interior in the 1970s. The interior was completely redesigned in 2009 under the new ownership. The restaurant finally closed in 2013.
Simon and Françoise have dinner here later in the film.
Simon and Charlot rehearse their escape – 61 Boulevard de la Croisette, Cannes, France.
Then they drive along the Croisette…
And end up on a pier at the Port Pierre Canto where they take a boat ride.
Simon and Françoise walk from the Felix – 63 Boulevard de la Croisette.
They walk past the jewelry store.
Then Simon makes a false move and Françoise politely tells him off in front of the Voilier restaurant – 61 Boulevard de la Croisette.
Françoise seeing Simon off – Cannes Station, 4 Place de la Gare, Cannes, France.
Simon gets off the train – Fréjus Station, Rue Martin Bidoure, Fréjus, France.
Simon asks the taxi driver to drop him off in the middle of the street – Rue de Courcelles at Rue de Monceau, Paris, France.
Simon meeting with Charlot – Still searching for this location. The address given in the film–24 Avenue Jean Jaurès, Aubervilliers–is fake. You can clearly see number 96 on the gatepost next to Luka's bar. I’ve researched the numbers 96 and 94 on Avenue Jean Jaurès both in Aubervilliers and La Courneuve but the buildings don’t look the same. It also might be a studio backlot.
Charlot seeing Simon off – Paris Orly Airport, Orly, Val-de-Marne, France.
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