Overview
A nostalgic journey through adolescence, filled with innocent mischief and heartwarming moments.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- warm
- mischievous
- arthouse film night
- french cinema evening
What critics said
Critics broadly praised Louis Malle's fresh, intelligent, affectionately comic coming-of-age film, especially its performances and delicate handling of provocative family material.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Fourteen-year-old Laurent navigates drinking, smoking, sexuality, illness, school life, and changing perceptions of his family.
Laurent's unusually close relationship with Clara is presented as affectionate, seductive, and unsettling within the family's bourgeois world.
The Chevalier household combines parental neglect, maternal overprotection, privilege, scandalous behavior, and wry social observation.
Jazz and the relaxed, playful treatment of mid-1950s adolescent life give the film a lively, affectionate surface despite its taboo material.
Films like Murmur of the Heart, and why
The 400 Blows
French coming-of-age drama balancing adolescent rebellion, family intimacy, and provocative sexuality with tenderness and humor
The Royal Tenenbaums
witty, bittersweet family comedy centered on precocious youth, bourgeois dysfunction, and emotionally complicated parents
A Summer's Tale
French adolescent perspective, sexual awakening, and candid treatment of family and social conventions
The Squid and the Whale
affectionate yet unsettling portrait of bourgeois family life shaped by youthful experimentation and taboo desire
Movie Details
- Director
- Louis Malle
- Release Date
- 1971-04-27
- Runtime
- 118 min
- Rating
- 7.0 / 10 (223)
Cast
- Lea Massari
- Benoît Ferreux
- Marc Winocourt
- Fabien Ferreux
- Daniel Gélin
- Michael Lonsdale
- Ave Ninchi
- Annie Savarin
- Gila von Weitershausen
- Micheline Bona
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Criterion Channel
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Murmur of the Heart about?
- A mischievous French teenager's sheltered adolescence unfolds amid bourgeois family eccentricity, sexual awakening, and a startlingly tender taboo.
- What is Murmur of the Heart like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Murmur of the Heart as measured, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Murmur of the Heart violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Murmur of the Heart as mild.
- What did critics think of Murmur of the Heart?
- Critics broadly praised Louis Malle's fresh, intelligent, affectionately comic coming-of-age film, especially its performances and delicate handling of provocative family material.
- Which films are like Murmur of the Heart?
- Films with a similar feel include The 400 Blows, The Royal Tenenbaums, A Summer's Tale, and The Squid and the Whale.
- How long is Murmur of the Heart?
- Murmur of the Heart runs 118 minutes.
- Where can I watch Murmur of the Heart?
- In United States, Murmur of the Heart streams on Criterion Channel.
