The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie

Le charme discret de la bourgeoisie

France, Italy, 1972

Comedy, Fantasy

Synopsis

Luis Buñuel’s satire follows the exploits of a group of bourgeois friends whose attempts to have a sophisticated dinner seems to be constantly foiled by the most bizarre of circumstances. Buñuel takes no prisoners, pulling his characters from the ruling elite of business, military, state and church.

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The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie Directed by Luis Buñuel

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Awards & Festivals

Berlin International Film Festival

2008

Academy Awards

1973 | Winner: Best Foreign Language Film

1973 | Nominee: Best Writing, Story and Screenplay Based on Factual Material or Material Not Previously Published or Produced

Locarno International Film Festival

1981

San Francisco International Film Festival

1972

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Cast & Crew

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Critics reviews

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Watching this for the first time took every muscle in my appreciation mechanism. The satire is sharp, the tone startling, the humor cathartic.

Alan Rudolph

July 18, 2018

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Luis Buñuel’s 1972 film boasts one of the best titles in movie history and a cast to match… Buñuel invites us to savor their endless frustration and feast on their irrational impulses. Blithely discontinuous, Discreet Charm has echoes of Buñuel’s early surrealist films, although its episodic, interlocking stories suggest the influence of The Saragossa Manuscript and Godard’s Weekend.

J. Hoberman

October 03, 2006

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If LE CHARME DISCRET DE LA BOURGEOISIE registers as the funniest Buñuel film since L’AGE D’OR, probably the most relaxed and controlled film he has ever made, and arguably the first contemporary, global masterpiece to have come from France in the 70s, this is chiefly because he has arrived at a form that covers his full range, permits him to say anything — a form that literally and figuratively lets him get away with murder.

Jonathan Rosenbaum

December 01, 1972

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What are people saying?

lbunuel's rating of the film The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
lbunuel

I find it hard to talk about this because I love it too much. It's the funniest, chilliest and most poetic nightmare anyone has ever attempted to commit to the screen. Everything by Buñuel is sublime, but this is one of his greatest achievements.
April 10, 2019 14:03
- 5
- 0
Richmond Hill's rating of the film The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
Richmond Hill

Not quite biting the hand that feeds him, but a fair proportion of Bunuel's audience is simultaneously skewered in this delicious laceration of haute bourgeoisie mores and rituals. Perhaps his most approachable work and a good starting point for the waking surrealism that confounds and bewilders all that is hypocritical established. An hilarious summation of recurring themes, notably from The Exterminating Angel.
January 24, 2019 18:44
- 4
- 0
HSBilly's rating of the film The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
HSBilly

6/5. the only explanation is.... *sound of airplane passing by. things get weird and weirder. this is a plotless masterpiece. all hail bunuel, he's so fucking genius.
April 12, 2019 15:58
- 18
- 2
Superfrog's rating of the film The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
Superfrog

Amazing yet indescribable. As close to a perfect harmony as a detuned instrument can get.
April 23, 2019 22:32
- 6
- 0
El Biffo's rating of the film The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
El Biffo

This film gave me nightmares when I was ten years old. And a lifelong appreciation for Luis Bunuel.
February 09, 2019 23:51
- 8
- 5
Adriano Rocha's rating of the film The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
Adriano Rocha

Sit with us at this table of hypocrisy and luxury. Forget the problems of the world, after all we can take a dry martini at ease in the living room. And we blame our minds every night in our dreams.
April 12, 2019 17:51
- 6
- 0
All Is Grace's rating of the film The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
All Is Grace

I have watched this fantastic film 3 times, and each time enjoyed it more than before. Not afraid to give it a 4th try. 5 stars out of 5, this movie is a true masterpiece of surrealism.
January 24, 2019 15:22
- 3
- 0
Filipe F. Coutinho's rating of the film The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
Filipe F. Coutinho

Entertaining watch, but far from my favorite Buñuel. Within the playground the filmmaker likes to explore, I find Belle de Jour and Exterminating Angel to be much more accomplished films. Still, it's always a pleasure observing an actor like Fernando Rey portray smugness in such a delightfully satiric fashion.
March 22, 2018 17:52
- 1
- 0