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L'opéra de quat'sous

  • 19311931
  • 1h 44m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
201
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
L'opéra de quat'sous (1931)
  • Comedy
  • Crime
  • Musical
The Gangster Macheath secretly marries the daughter of beggar king Peachum. When Peachum finds out, he instructs the police chief Brown to arrest and hang Macheath. If not, all the beggars o... Read allThe Gangster Macheath secretly marries the daughter of beggar king Peachum. When Peachum finds out, he instructs the police chief Brown to arrest and hang Macheath. If not, all the beggars of Soho will disturb the upcoming coronation.The Gangster Macheath secretly marries the daughter of beggar king Peachum. When Peachum finds out, he instructs the police chief Brown to arrest and hang Macheath. If not, all the beggars of Soho will disturb the upcoming coronation.
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
201
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Georg Wilhelm Pabst
  • Writers
    • Béla Balázs(adaptation)
    • Bertolt Brecht(play "Die Dreigroschenoper")
    • Léo Lania(adaptation)
  • Stars
    • Albert Préjean
    • Florelle
    • Gaston Modot
Top credits
  • Director
    • Georg Wilhelm Pabst
  • Writers
    • Béla Balázs(adaptation)
    • Bertolt Brecht(play "Die Dreigroschenoper")
    • Léo Lania(adaptation)
  • Stars
    • Albert Préjean
    • Florelle
    • Gaston Modot
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 2User reviews
    • 1Critic review
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win

    Photos8

    Rudolf Forster and Albert Préjean in L'opéra de quat'sous (1931)
    Florelle, Lucy de Matha, and Albert Préjean in L'opéra de quat'sous (1931)
    Rudolf Forster, Valeska Gert, Lotte Lenya, Carola Neher, Albert Préjean, Reinhold Schünzel, and Sylvia Torf in L'opéra de quat'sous (1931)
    Die 3 Groschen-Oper (1931)
    L'opéra de quat'sous (1931)
    Florelle in L'opéra de quat'sous (1931)
    Florelle and Albert Préjean in L'opéra de quat'sous (1931)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Albert Préjean
    Albert Préjean
    • Mackieas Mackie
    Florelle
    Florelle
    • Polly Peachumas Polly Peachum
    Gaston Modot
    Gaston Modot
    • Peachumas Peachum
    Margo Lion
    Margo Lion
    • Jennyas Jenny
    Vladimir Sokoloff
    Vladimir Sokoloff
    • Smithas Smith
    • (as Wladimir Sokoloff)
    Lucy de Matha
    • Mme Peachumas Mme Peachum
    Jacques Henley
    • Tiger Brownas Tiger Brown
    Bill Bocket
    • Chanteur de ruesas Chanteur de rues
    • (as Bill-Bocketts)
    Hermann Thimig
    Hermann Thimig
    • Pasteuras Pasteur
    Antonin Artaud
    Antonin Artaud
    • Nouveau mendantas Nouveau mendant
    Roger Gaillard
    • Mendiantas Mendiant
    • (as Gaillard)
    Marie-Antoinette Buzet
    • Fille à Turnbridgeas Fille à Turnbridge
    Arthur Duarte
    Marcel Merminod
    Pierre Léaud
    Albert Broquin
    • Director
      • Georg Wilhelm Pabst
    • Writers
      • Béla Balázs(adaptation)
      • Bertolt Brecht(play "Die Dreigroschenoper")
      • Léo Lania(adaptation)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit
    The Gangster Macheath secretly marries the daughter of beggar king Peachum. When Peachum finds out, he instructs the police chief Brown to arrest and hang Macheath. If not, all the beggars of Soho will disturb the upcoming coronation.
    • satire
    • based on play
    • Plot summary
    • Add synopsis
    • Genres
      • Comedy
      • Crime
      • Musical
    • Parents guide
      • Add content advisory

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The French title "L'opéra de quat'sous" translates literally into English as "The Four-Nickel Opera", "The Four-Shilling Opera", or "The 20-Cent Opera", since the sou was a coin worth five centimes, and the centime was the French equivalent of a penny in pre-Euro currency.
    • Connections
      Alternate-language version of The 3 Penny Opera (1931)
    • Soundtracks
      La Complainte de Mackie
      (Die Moritat von Mackie Messer)

      Music by Kurt Weill

      German lyrics by Bertolt Brecht

      French lyrics by André Mauprey

      Performed by Florelle

    User reviews2

    Review
    Top review
    Pretty much "Die 3 Groschen-Oper" but made with a French-speaking cast.
    If you've already seen the German language version of this film that was directed by G.W. Pabst, you've pretty much seen this film. Let me explain. In the early days of sound films, film producers figured that most audiences didn't want to see a talking picture with subtitles--this was the prevailing feeling at the time. And, because they really hadn't figured out the process for dubbing films in various languages, the studios did something pretty freaky. With 'big' productions, they often made multiple versions for international consumption. In the case of Laurel & Hardy, who were huge international stars, they literally had them make versions of their films where the pair phonetically delivered their lines--mostly to an all-new supporting cast who spoke this other language (although James Finlayson appeared in some of these dual language films). They made French, German, Italian and Spanish language films--longer and often very different from their American shorts. In the case of most other prestige films, the film actually had two separate casts that used the exact same sets--the international one filming after hours. This is the case with "L'opéra de Quat'sous", as the German director G.W. Pabst literally made two versions of his film--one German and this one French. I have no idea if he made any other versions of this film.

    Because this film had the same director making both, the subsequent films are a lot more similar than many similar types of films. For example, the American version of "Dracula" and the Spanish one had totally different directors and so many of the scenes looked very, very different. Because "L'opéra de Quat'sous" and "Die 3 Groschen-Oper" BOTH had Pabst at the helm, the two are, at times, pretty indistinguishable and I'd rate them both to be roughly equal in quality. Both look simply marvelous--but both also are a bit tough to watch because they are musicals--unless you know the language. And, musicals translate much poorer to subtitles than an ordinary film.

    If you DO want to see both films, they are included together in a collection from Criterion. Worth seeing if you are a cinemaniac!
    helpful•4
    3
    • planktonrules
    • Aug 17, 2011

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 8, 1933 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • Germany
      • United States
    • Language
      • French
    • Also known as
      • The Threepenny Opera
    • Production companies
      • Nero-Film AG
      • Tobis Filmkunst
      • Warner Bros.
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 44 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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