Subway (film)
Encyclopedia
Subway is a 1985 French film
directed by Luc Besson
, starring Isabelle Adjani
and Christopher Lambert
and is part of the Cinema du look
movement.
. While the henchmen of the gangster owner of the documents chase him, Fred develops a relationship with the gangster's young trophy wife Héléna (Adjani) who is bored with her gilded-caged life.
Fred decides to form a band and perform in the subway. Among the band members are the Drummer (played by Jean Reno
) and the Bass Player (Éric Serra
).
At a performance with the newly formed band (where Fred has paid off the actual performers at an announced concert with money from a robbery and put his band in their place) he is shot by the henchmen of Héléna's husband before she can reach him to warn him of the approaching danger. The film ends with her kneeling beside him, Fred lying on his back looking content and singing along to the band playing in the background. The ending is left open as to what actually happens in the growing love relation between Fred and Helena — and to whether he survives.
and Les Specialistes
. It attracted 2,920,588 cinemagoers. Christopher Lambert won a César Award
for best actor.
The film holds an 86% rating on Rotten Tomatoes
, based on seven reviews. Janet Maslin
of The New York Times
praised the film's "highly energetic visual style" and "the sheer fun of staging domestic scenes, musical interludes and roller-skate chases in the underground" but added that "[the] characters and situations [are] so thin that they might as well be afterthoughts."
's score and other musical pieces from the soundtrack, such as Fred's band's song "It's Only Mystery" (also written by Serra) were released on vinyl and cassette in 1985. The soundtrack was not available on CD
until the RCA
/BMG France reissue in 2003.
at the Little Big Horn" instead of "Napoleon at Waterloo
"), and a number of very loose translations from the original French dialogue. This has been by far the more common version in North America. The French-audio, English-subtitled version is identical to the French cinematic release, and has more accurate dialogue translations. Long unavailable except on rare alternative VHS
copies, it was re-released on the 2001 reissue version of the U.S. (NTSC
, Region 1
) DVD (ISBN 076786557X), along with the English-dubbed audio track and a new Spanish subtitles option. It is also available on a 2009 region-free Blu-ray release. Earlier region 1 DVDs (1997), the laserdisc
(ca. 1988) and almost all NTSC VHS copies (1986, , reissued as a shortened 98-minute cut with new cover art in 2001) have only the dubbed version.
's Breathless (1960) The opening car chase scene is a reference to Besson's first feature film
, 1983's Le dernier combat
.
Cinema of France
The Cinema of France comprises the art of film and creative movies made within the nation of France or by French filmmakers abroad.France is the birthplace of cinema and was responsible for many of its early significant contributions. Several important cinematic movements, including the Nouvelle...
directed by Luc Besson
Luc Besson
Luc Besson is a French film director, writer, and producer. He is the creator of EuropaCorp film company. He has been involved with over 50 films, spanning 26 years, as writer, director, and/or producer.-Early life:...
, starring Isabelle Adjani
Isabelle Adjani
Isabelle Yasmine Adjani is a French film actress and singer. Adjani has appeared in 30 films since 1970. She holds the record for most César Awards for Best Actress with five, for Possession , One Deadly Summer , Camille Claudel , Queen Margot and Skirt Day...
and Christopher Lambert
Christopher Lambert
Christophe Guy Denis "Christopher" Lambert is an American-born French actor who has appeared in French, European and American productions. He is best known for his role as Connor MacLeod, or simply "The Highlander", from the movie and subsequent movie franchise series of the same name...
and is part of the Cinema du look
Cinema du look
Cinéma du look was a French film movement of the 1980s, analysed, for the first time, by French critic Raphaël Bassan in La Revue du Cinéma issue n° 448, May 1989, in which Luc Besson was lumped with two other directors who shared "le look." These directors were said to favor style over substance,...
movement.
Plot
Having stolen some compromising documents, a man known as Fred (Lambert) takes refuge in the underground world of the Paris MétroParis Métro
The Paris Métro or Métropolitain is the rapid transit metro system in Paris, France. It has become a symbol of the city, noted for its density within the city limits and its uniform architecture influenced by Art Nouveau. The network's sixteen lines are mostly underground and run to 214 km ...
. While the henchmen of the gangster owner of the documents chase him, Fred develops a relationship with the gangster's young trophy wife Héléna (Adjani) who is bored with her gilded-caged life.
Fred decides to form a band and perform in the subway. Among the band members are the Drummer (played by Jean Reno
Jean Reno
Jean Reno is a French actor. Working in French, English, Spanish and Italian, he has appeared not only in numerous successful Hollywood productions such as The Pink Panther, Godzilla, The Da Vinci Code, Mission: Impossible, Ronin and Couples Retreat, but also in European productions such as the...
) and the Bass Player (Éric Serra
Eric Serra
Éric Serra is a French composer. He has often worked on the movies of Luc Besson.- Biography :Éric Serra's father Claude was a famous French songwriter in the 1950s and '60s, and, as such, Éric was exposed to music and its production at a young age. His mother died when he was just seven years old...
).
At a performance with the newly formed band (where Fred has paid off the actual performers at an announced concert with money from a robbery and put his band in their place) he is shot by the henchmen of Héléna's husband before she can reach him to warn him of the approaching danger. The film ends with her kneeling beside him, Fred lying on his back looking content and singing along to the band playing in the background. The ending is left open as to what actually happens in the growing love relation between Fred and Helena — and to whether he survives.
Cast
- Isabelle AdjaniIsabelle AdjaniIsabelle Yasmine Adjani is a French film actress and singer. Adjani has appeared in 30 films since 1970. She holds the record for most César Awards for Best Actress with five, for Possession , One Deadly Summer , Camille Claudel , Queen Margot and Skirt Day...
- Héléna - Christopher LambertChristopher LambertChristophe Guy Denis "Christopher" Lambert is an American-born French actor who has appeared in French, European and American productions. He is best known for his role as Connor MacLeod, or simply "The Highlander", from the movie and subsequent movie franchise series of the same name...
(as Christophe Lambert) - Fred - Richard BohringerRichard BohringerRichard Bohringer is a French actor.-Personal life:Bohringer was born in Moulins, Allier. He is the father of actress Romane Bohringer, and has two other children, Richard and Lou.-Career:...
- Le fleuriste/The Florist - Michel GalabruMichel GalabruMichel Louis Edmond Galabru is a French actor born on 27 October 1922 in Safi, Morocco.-Career:Over the course of his career, Galabru appeared in over 200 movies and worked with such renowned directors as Bertrand Blier, Costa-Gavras, Luc Besson , and Jean-Luc Godard...
- Commissaire Gesbert/Commissioner Gesberg - Jean-Hugues AngladeJean-Hugues AngladeJean-Hugues Anglade is a French actor, film director and screenwriter, best known for his roles as Eric in Killing Zoe, Zorg in Betty Blue and Marco, the boyfriend of Nikita, in Nikita....
- Le patineur/The Rollerskater - Jean BouiseJean BouiseJean Bouise was a French actor. In the 1950s he helped to found Théâtre de la Cité, and was a player in the company. He entered films in the 1960s, and played a supporting roles in The Shameless Old Lady, Z, L'Aveu, Out 1 and The Return of the Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe, Section spéciale...
- Le chef de station/The Station Master - Jean-Pierre BacriJean-Pierre BacriJean-Pierre Bacri is a French actor and screenwriter who frequently works in collaboration with Agnès Jaoui.-Life:One of his earliest film appearances was Subway...
- Insp. Batman - Jean-Claude Lecas - Robin
- Pierre-Ange Le Pogam - Jean
- Jean RenoJean RenoJean Reno is a French actor. Working in French, English, Spanish and Italian, he has appeared not only in numerous successful Hollywood productions such as The Pink Panther, Godzilla, The Da Vinci Code, Mission: Impossible, Ronin and Couples Retreat, but also in European productions such as the...
- The Drummer - Éric SerraEric SerraÉric Serra is a French composer. He has often worked on the movies of Luc Besson.- Biography :Éric Serra's father Claude was a famous French songwriter in the 1950s and '60s, and, as such, Éric was exposed to music and its production at a young age. His mother died when he was just seven years old...
- Enrico (bassist)
Reception
Subway was the third most popular French film in France in 1986, after Trois Hommes et un CouffinTrois hommes et un couffin
Trois hommes et un couffin is a 1985 French film by Coline Serreau upon which the 1987 U.S. remake Three Men and a Baby was based.- Synopsis :...
and Les Specialistes
Les Spécialistes
-Cast and roles:* Bernard Giraudeau - Paul Brandon* Gérard Lanvin - Stéphane Carella* Christiane Jean - Laura* Maurice Barrier - Kovacs* Daniel Jégou - Casino director* Bertie Cortez - Mazetti- External links :...
. It attracted 2,920,588 cinemagoers. Christopher Lambert won a César Award
César Award
The César Award is the national film award of France, first given out in 1975. The nominations are selected by the members of the Académie des arts et techniques du cinéma....
for best actor.
The film holds an 86% rating on Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
, based on seven reviews. Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin is an American journalist, best known as a film and literary critic for The New York Times. She served as the Times film critic from 1977–1999.- Biography :...
of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
praised the film's "highly energetic visual style" and "the sheer fun of staging domestic scenes, musical interludes and roller-skate chases in the underground" but added that "[the] characters and situations [are] so thin that they might as well be afterthoughts."
Soundtrack
Éric SerraEric Serra
Éric Serra is a French composer. He has often worked on the movies of Luc Besson.- Biography :Éric Serra's father Claude was a famous French songwriter in the 1950s and '60s, and, as such, Éric was exposed to music and its production at a young age. His mother died when he was just seven years old...
's score and other musical pieces from the soundtrack, such as Fred's band's song "It's Only Mystery" (also written by Serra) were released on vinyl and cassette in 1985. The soundtrack was not available on CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
until the RCA
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
/BMG France reissue in 2003.
English-language releases
The film was produced and released in two English-language variants. One uses English overdubbing, with both Lambert, Adjani and possibly Anglade performing their own English dialogue, has several Americanized script differences (e.g. a reference to "CusterGeorge Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. Raised in Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted to West Point in 1858, where he graduated last in his class...
at the Little Big Horn" instead of "Napoleon at Waterloo
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
"), and a number of very loose translations from the original French dialogue. This has been by far the more common version in North America. The French-audio, English-subtitled version is identical to the French cinematic release, and has more accurate dialogue translations. Long unavailable except on rare alternative VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
copies, it was re-released on the 2001 reissue version of the U.S. (NTSC
NTSC
NTSC, named for the National Television System Committee, is the analog television system that is used in most of North America, most of South America , Burma, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and some Pacific island nations and territories .Most countries using the NTSC standard, as...
, Region 1
DVD region code
DVD region codes are a digital-rights management technique designed to allow film distributors to control aspects of a release, including content, release date, and price, according to the region...
) DVD (ISBN 076786557X), along with the English-dubbed audio track and a new Spanish subtitles option. It is also available on a 2009 region-free Blu-ray release. Earlier region 1 DVDs (1997), the laserdisc
Laserdisc
LaserDisc was a home video format and the first commercial optical disc storage medium. Initially licensed, sold, and marketed as MCA DiscoVision in North America in 1978, the technology was previously referred to interally as Optical Videodisc System, Reflective Optical Videodisc, Laser Optical...
(ca. 1988) and almost all NTSC VHS copies (1986, , reissued as a shortened 98-minute cut with new cover art in 2001) have only the dubbed version.
Film references
Fred's shooting is based loosely on the ending of Jean-Luc GodardJean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard is a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter and film critic. He is often identified with the 1960s French film movement, French Nouvelle Vague, or "New Wave"....
's Breathless (1960) The opening car chase scene is a reference to Besson's first feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
, 1983's Le dernier combat
Le Dernier Combat
Le Dernier Combat , released in 1983 French film is the first feature film made by Luc Besson. The film is a dark vision of post-apocalyptic survival.The plot explores the devastation of civilization and issues of brutality, hostility and isolation...
.