Gates of the Night (French: Les Portes de la nuit) is a 1946 French mystery film directed by Marcel Carné and starring Pierre Brasseur, Serge Reggiani, Yves Montand, Nathalie Nattier and Saturnin Fabre. The script was written by Carné's long-time collaborator, the poet and librettist Jacques Prévert. The film made its debut in the United States in 1950.
The film introduced Jacques Prévert & Joseph Kosma's much-recorded song "Les feuilles mortes", which was released as "Autumn Leaves" in 1950 with English lyrics by Johnny Mercer. Prévert & Kosma's "Les Enfants qui s'Aiment" is also in the film.
In the winter of 1945, immediately after the liberation, Jean Diego (Montand), a member of the French underground during World War II, meets Raymond, one of his comrades in arms who was believed to have succumbed in battle. On the night of that meeting, Jean encounters a homeless man named "Destiny" (Jean Vilar) who predicts Diego's and the other characters' futures and deaths, and orchestrates the romantic and tragic adventure between Diego and Malou (Nathalie Nattier), a young woman who is married to a rich man. The next hours of his and Malou's lives are underscored by extreme, dramatic events.
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The film is an adaptation of the renowned ballet Le Rendez-vous, written by Jacques Prévert based on his poem of the same name, with music by Joeph Kosma, choreography by Roland Petit and scenic design by Pablo Picasso. It premiered at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées shortly after the Liberation; Jean Gabin and Marlene Dietrich attended the premiere. During the preparation of the film, they were supposed to play the star couple. Dietrich withdrew, Marcel Carné replaced her with Nathalie Nattier and gave her as a partner, on the advice of Édith Piaf, Yves Montand, then a young singer in full triumph at the Théâtre de l'Étoile.
1 hour 40 minutes