Attention film buffs: it might be time to brush up on your French. Jean Renoir’s acclaimed and classic Rules of the Game is coming back to theaters with a new 4K restoration. The film will open in New York at Film Forum on Friday, December 23, 2022. The film will then open in Los Angeles at the Los Feliz Theater on Thursday, December 29, 2022. A national rollout for the film will follow the coastal showings.
Often considered to be one of the greatest films of all time, The Rules of the Game or La règle du jeu in French, is a film that serves as a critique of the corruptness at the core of French society in the 1930s. The film, on its surface, appears to be a comedy. However, at its core, it is a wicked look at the rotten center of polite society. The film takes place during a weekend at a marquis’ country château, and brings out the ugly truths regarding a group of bourgeois friends and acquaintances.
The film itself has its own very tumultuous history, as it was subjected to some pretty serious cuts after a violent response from audiences at the film’s 1939 premiere. Additionally, the film’s original negatives were destroyed during the tumult of World War II. The film wouldn’t be reconstructed until 1959. And it is that version, which has stunned audiences for many decades, which will be presented in the new 4K restoration. The rerelease of the film certainly comes at an apt time, considering the growing inequalities plaguing society both in the United States and abroad.
