The French

1982 2h 10m FR

👍

7.2

SOLID

🔥

100%

CERTIFIED FRESH

⭐

7.3

IMDB

★7.2TMDB · 12🍅100%Rotten Tomatoes★7.3IMDB · 105

Documentary

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Roland-Garros, 1981: For the very first time, a documentary team is allowed to shoot sequences in the backstage of the French Open of tennis of Roland-Garros. William Klein's camera takes us on the heels of the greatest players of the time: Björn Borg, Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl, Chris Evert-Lloyd, John McEnroe, Martina Navratilova, Yannick Noah, Guillermo Vilas... Miles of film. Historical pictures, a thousand and one details, a thousand and one unusual scenes. A declaration of love from a tennis lover.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Arthur Ashe
Self
Marcel Bernard
Self
Björn Borg
Self
Don Budge
Self
Philippe Chatrier
Self
Henri Cochet
Self
Jimmy Connors
Self
Chris Evert
Self

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: William Klein
Languages: English, Spanish, French, Czech
Countries: France

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

44 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 4 languages: English, Spanish, French, Czech.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by William Klein, shot by Nurith Aviv. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Nelly Quettier shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Arthur Ashe and Marcel Bernard and Björn Borg carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0367754 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

Only 12 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

William Klein directs. Nurith Aviv behind the camera. Nelly Quettier cuts. Produced in France. Dialogue in English, Spanish, French, Czech.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

144 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Dialogue crosses 4 languages: English, Spanish, French, Czech.
3Directed by William Klein, shot by Nurith Aviv. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Editor Nelly Quettier shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Arthur Ashe and Marcel Bernard and Björn Borg carry the top of the cast.
6IMDB entry: tt0367754 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
7Only 12 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.