X
  • 2011
  • Not Rated
  • Music Box Films
  • 2 h 15 m
  • 2011
  • Not Rated
  • Music Box Films
  • 2 h 15 m

Summary Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life is a completely original take on one of France’s greatest mavericks, the illustrious and infamous Jewish singer-songwriter, Serge Gainsbourg. Born Lucien Ginsburg to Russian-Jewish parents, Sfar follows him from his precocious childhood in Nazi-occupied Paris, to his beginnings as small time jazz musician and fi...

Directed By: Joann Sfar

Written By: Joann Sfar

  • 2011
  • Not Rated
  • Music Box Films
  • 2 h 15 m
  • 2011
  • Not Rated
  • Music Box Films
  • 2 h 15 m

Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life

Metascore Mixed or Average Based on 26 Critic Reviews
58
User Score Generally Favorable Based on 11 User Ratings
6.5
My Score
Hover and click to give a rating Saved

Where to Watch

Summary Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life is a completely original take on one of France’s greatest mavericks, the illustrious and infamous Jewish singer-songwriter, Serge Gainsbourg. Born Lucien Ginsburg to Russian-Jewish parents, Sfar follows him from his precocious childhood in Nazi-occupied Paris, to his beginnings as small time jazz musician and fi...

Directed By: Joann Sfar

Written By: Joann Sfar

Where to Watch

Top Cast

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Critic Reviews

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Metascore
Mixed or Average Based on 26 Critic Reviews
58
50% Positive
13 Reviews
50% Mixed
13 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews

Critic Reviews

 View All
Metascore
Mixed or Average Based on 26 Critic Reviews
58
50% Positive
13 Reviews
50% Mixed
13 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
80
Sep 1, 2011
Unconventional, imaginative, nothing if not audacious, Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life is a portrait of creativity from the inside, a serious yet playful attempt to find an artistic way to tell an emotional truth.
By Kenneth Turan FULL REVIEW
75
Aug 31, 2011
While an iconic figure in France, Gainsbourg isn't a household name here in the States. But that shouldn't stop audiences from enjoying Sfar's good-looking, fanciful film.
By V.A. Musetto FULL REVIEW
67
Aug 31, 2011
At once overly episodic and playfully arty, like a TV movie made by Fellini.
By Owen Gleiberman FULL REVIEW
60
Sep 2, 2011
What the movie lacks in depth it makes up for in surreal humor, and - just as he should - Gainsbourg look-alike Elmosnino seduces us effortlessly.
By Elizabeth Weitzman FULL REVIEW
58
Sep 2, 2011
Sfar's imaginative direction and the film's lush visual sense, along with a hugely charismatic performance by Eric Elmosnino in the title role, do manage to elevate much of the formula elements.
By Ian Buckwalter FULL REVIEW
50
Aug 30, 2011
The movie turns terminally wearisome and even anti-climactic with the triumph of the brain-lodging "Je T'aime" (which, alone among the movie's numbers, is heard in its original version) and Gainsbourg's descent into alcoholic dissolution.
By J. Hoberman FULL REVIEW
40
Aug 30, 2011
Despite the attention the film pays to the divide between the man as the ungainly, loving second-gen immigrant versus the boozy provocateur, it's not a portrait of much psychological depth.
FULL REVIEW

User Reviews

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User Score
Generally Favorable Based on 11 User Ratings
6.5
73% Positive
8 Ratings
18% Mixed
2 Ratings
9% Negative
1 Rating

User Reviews

 View All
User Score
Generally Favorable Based on 11 User Ratings
6.5
73% Positive
8 Ratings
18% Mixed
2 Ratings
9% Negative
1 Rating

There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.

Details

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Production Company One World Films, Studio 37, Universal Pictures International (UPI), France 2 Cinéma, Lilou Films, Xilam, Uni Etoile 6, Canal+, France Télévisions, Orange Cinéma Séries, La Région Île-de-France
Release Date Aug 31, 2011
Duration 2 h 15 m
Rating Not Rated
Genres
Website http://www.musicboxfilms.com/gainsbourg
View All Details

Awards

César Awards, France
• 3 Wins & 8 Nominations
Étoiles d'Or, France
• 2 Wins & 2 Nominations
Tribeca Film Festival
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations

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