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I Want to Go Home

  • 19891989
  • 1h 40m
IMDb RATING
5.4/10
716
YOUR RATING
I Want to Go Home (1989)
  • Comedy
A grumpy American is suffering during his visit to Europe.A grumpy American is suffering during his visit to Europe.A grumpy American is suffering during his visit to Europe.
IMDb RATING
5.4/10
716
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Alain Resnais
  • Writer
    • Jules Feiffer
  • Stars
    • Laura Benson
    • Adolph Green
    • Linda Lavin
Top credits
  • Director
    • Alain Resnais
  • Writer
    • Jules Feiffer
  • Stars
    • Laura Benson
    • Adolph Green
    • Linda Lavin
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 3User reviews
    • 11Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 3 wins & 5 nominations

    Photos69

    Laura Benson in I Want to Go Home (1989)
    Adolph Green in I Want to Go Home (1989)
    Adolph Green in I Want to Go Home (1989)
    I Want to Go Home (1989)
    Adolph Green in I Want to Go Home (1989)
    I Want to Go Home (1989)
    Adolph Green in I Want to Go Home (1989)
    I Want to Go Home (1989)
    I Want to Go Home (1989)
    Laura Benson in I Want to Go Home (1989)
    Gérard Depardieu and Adolph Green in I Want to Go Home (1989)
    I Want to Go Home (1989)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Laura Benson
    Laura Benson
    • Elsie Wellman
    Adolph Green
    Adolph Green
    • Joey Wellman
    Linda Lavin
    Linda Lavin
    • Lena Apthrop
    Gérard Depardieu
    Gérard Depardieu
    • Christian Gauthier
    Geraldine Chaplin
    Geraldine Chaplin
    • Terry Amstrong
    François-Eric Gendron
    François-Eric Gendron
    • Lionel Cohn-Martin
    Georges Fricker
    • Roxy Darcel, le compagnon de Terry
    John Ashton
    John Ashton
    • Harry Dempsey
    Caroline Silhol
    • Dora Dempsey
    • (as Caroline Sihol)
    Micheline Presle
    Micheline Presle
    • Isabelle Gauthier
    Patrick Bonnel
    • Le boucher
    Charlotte Bonnet
    • La femme chauffeur de taxi
    Isabelle Wolfe
    • Laureline
    • (as Isabelle Canet-Wolfe)
    Jean-Marc Cozic
    • Tintin
    Tony Dias
    • Valentina
    Guillaume Farny
    • Bateman
    Alain Fromager
    • L'étudiant dans le bureau de Gauthier
    Peter Hudson
    Peter Hudson
    • Le Spectre
    • Director
      • Alain Resnais
    • Writer
      • Jules Feiffer
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Writer Jules Feiffer claimed that the plot of the film originated with the amused bafflement he, as an American, felt about the intense admiration shown by French intellectuals towards the films of Jerry Lewis.
    • Soundtracks
      I Love Paris
      Music by Cole Porter

      Lyrics by Cole Porter

    User reviews3

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    Franco-American relations will surely get a boost if this film is shown to the concerned people.
    Before shooting "I want to go home", if Resnais had thought of keeping somebody in mind, it is quite possible that he must have had ruminated about both American and French public. "I want to go home" shows why French fascinate Americans so much. It is a fairly honest portrayal of why French have all the respect for Americans. It is so hard to believe that this comic film was made by Resnais. For the last five decades, he has remained a highly intelligent intellectual cinéaste who has excelled in making difficult films about memories. Watching his films can be likened to a concentrated reading of a "stream of consciousness" oeuvre. Not only will this film charm die-hard francophiles like Paul Auster, Johnny Depp, William Fiedkin, Jim Jarmusch, Hal Hartley and John Malkovich but also fans of comic strips as it is not so often that one comes across a feature film in which there is a happy marriage of cartoons and film. Through this quirky work, Resnais has advocated popular culture as in today's world Mickey Mouse, Snoopy, Charlie Brown and Garfield are as relevant/necessary and useful for everybody as Flaubert, Stendhal and Sartre. "I want to go home" is a light film which provides a multiplicity of meanings for its viewers. On an elementary level it explores cultural differences between French and American people. On another level it is also a tale of an amicable reconciliation process which happens between a father meeting his daughter after many years. This emotional turmoil has been shown in a very dignified indeed subtle manner. Although it might seem odd, this film makes it absolutely clear that French have a penchant for admiring those American artists who have been ignominiously rejected/ignored back home in USA. One classical example is Samuel Fuller. He enjoys a bigger, dedicated fan following in France than in United States of America. "I want to go home" is a film which can be understood by all kinds of artists. It speaks of different arts like cinema, comics etc. This is why Resnais has collaborated with great artists like Enki Bilal, Jules Feiffer and John Kander. The highlight of this film is the fact that it shows how all arts are interrelated as well as mutually beneficial. In "I want to go home" the characters alternate between serious mood and comic mood. This is because people can't always remain funny or serious. Resnais makes us all imbibe a logical lesson that in our daily lives we have to react according to the situation in which we find ourselves. Lastly it is high time that it is said that although Americans might abhor French or vice versa, the truth is that both of them cannot live without each other.
    helpful•13
    3
    • FilmCriticLalitRao
    • May 4, 2007

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 27, 1989 (France)
    • Country of origin
      • France
    • Languages
      • French
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Jag vill hem!
    • Filming locations
      • Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport, Roissy, Val-d'Oise, France
    • Production companies
      • Films A2
      • Investimage
      • La Sept Cinéma
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 40 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Stereo
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.66 : 1

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