(France—1939—directed by Jean Renoir)

As a weekend hunting party at a rural French chateau spins out of control, the dangerous liaisons of both guests and servants veer from comedy to tragedy with a deftness, wit and exuberance that remains unequalled in all of cinema. Cited by critics the world over as one of the greatest films of all time, Jean Renoir’s brilliantly conceived comedy of manners is both a scathing criticism of French society as well as a celebration of it; as one of its characters wisely observes, “the terrible truth about this life is that everyone has his reasons.” This restored 35mm print will come as a revelation even to those who’ve seen the film dozens of times before. A truly essential film. In French with English subtitles. (106 min.)