One of the most visually resplendent romances ever committed to film, Jacques Demy’s beautifully sad musical tells the story of Guy (Nino Catelnuovo), a young car mechanic who is about to be shipped off to the Algerian War, and Genevieve (Catherine Deneuve), who works as an assistant in Guy’s mother’s umbrella shop.
Falling deeply in love, Genevieve falls pregnant just as Guy heads off to war, leaving her with the decision about whether to wait for her love, or to accept the proposal a wealthy diamond merchant, who is promising to take care of her and her child…
Entirely delivered in song, Demy’s pastel-coloured musical was a huge hit on its release in 1964, winning the Palme d’Or at Cannes and going on to garner four Oscar nominations.
With unforgettable music by Michel Legrand, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg is one of the most famous foreign language musicals, and is a perfectly wintery, Christmastime tearjerker.