Overview
A gripping tale of love and survival unfolds in the shadows of war-torn Paris.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- None
- witty
- intimate
- tense
- film club night
- french cinema evening
What critics said
Critics broadly regard Truffaut's richly performed wartime theater drama as an accomplished and emotionally resonant blend of romance, historical tension, and theatrical self-reflection.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The central plot follows a theater company rehearsing and staging a new play while the hidden life of the theater director shapes events backstage.
Marion keeps the theater operating in occupied Paris while navigating censorship, persecution, and the need to protect Lucas.
Lucas secretly lives beneath the theater, making rehearsals, visits, and political danger carry layered significance.
The narrative concentrates wartime pressure inside a Paris theater and its backstage spaces, emphasizing performance and proximity.
Films like The Last Metro, and why
To Be or Not to Be
Shared wartime setting, theatrical self-reflexivity, romantic tension, and morally pressured artists under occupation.
The Garden of the Finzi-Continis
Shared drama of art, performance, and intimate relationships unfolding under fascist persecution.
Army of Shadows
Shared occupied-Europe setting, clandestine resistance, romance, and bittersweet emotional tension.
The Servant
Shared focus on theater, performance, deception, and the entanglement of art with political danger.
Movie Details
- Director
- François Truffaut
- Release Date
- 1980-09-17
- Runtime
- 131 min
- Rating
- 7.2 / 10 (536)
Cast
- Catherine Deneuve
- Gérard Depardieu
- Jean Poiret
- Andréa Ferréol
- Paulette Dubost
- Jean-Louis Richard
- Maurice Risch
- Heinz Bennent
- Sabine Haudepin
- Christian Baltauss
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- HBO Max Amazon Channel, Criterion Channel, HBO Max
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Last Metro about?
- In occupied Paris, a determined actress sustains her theater while secretly protecting her Jewish husband and negotiating dangerous artistic and romantic entanglements.
- What is The Last Metro like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Last Metro as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Last Metro violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in The Last Metro.
- What did critics think of The Last Metro?
- Critics broadly regard Truffaut's richly performed wartime theater drama as an accomplished and emotionally resonant blend of romance, historical tension, and theatrical self-reflection.
- Which films are like The Last Metro?
- Films with a similar feel include To Be or Not to Be, The Garden of the Finzi-Continis, Army of Shadows, and The Servant.
- How long is The Last Metro?
- The Last Metro runs 131 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Last Metro?
- In United States, The Last Metro streams on HBO Max Amazon Channel, Criterion Channel, HBO Max.
