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The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie

Play trailer Poster for The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie PG 1972 1h 40m Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
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98% Tomatometer 55 Reviews 88% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
The ambassador of the Latin American republic of Miranda (Fernando Rey), M. Thevenot (Paul Frankeur), his wife Simone (Delphine Seyrig) and her sister Florence (Bulle Ogier) arrive for a dinner party at the house of Alice Sénéchal (Stéphane Audran) and her husband Henri (Jean-Pierre Cassel), only to learn that they were mistaken about the date. In director Luis Buñuel's surreal fantasy, the six bourgeois friends repeatedly gather for a dinner that never quite arrives.
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The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie

The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie

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Critics Consensus

An intoxicating dose of the director's signature surrealist style, The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie represents Buñuel at his most accessible.

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Critics Reviews

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Pauline Kael The New Yorker Sep 28, 2023
The charm of the film is that the old magician can show off his skills and make fun of them at the same time... There is nothing else in the movie -- just the surprises, and the pleasures of [Buñuel] dexterity as he springs them. Go to Full Review Kevin Maher The Times (UK) Sep 9, 2022
4/5
... Simultaneously darkly satirical, bleak, witty and lightly amusing. Go to Full Review David Denby The Atlantic Jun 21, 2022
Bunuel’s art is as insolent as ever. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie is a deeply funny movie, as a viewing experience it’s like walking across a perilous, sway little bridge whose guide rails periodically snatched away. Go to Full Review Dennis Harvey 48 Hills Sep 12, 2022
Discreet Charm is a deadpan farce forever flirting with anarchy. Go to Full Review Neely Swanson Easy Reader (California) Jul 27, 2022
Absurdity is piled onto absurdity and reality and surreality blend until it is impossible to tell which is which. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Kyle M @RT77296778 Oct 23, 2026 Luis Bunuel may have thought of an early form of satirical aim surrounding wealth through repetitive pity and disconnected characterization that undermines the grasped prompt as bland execution besides few surreal curiosities he managed to prop. (B-) See more Levi J @Lev77 Jun 1, 2026 Dark and amusing depiction of the absurdity, hypocrisy, and obsessions of the upper class, examining their cruel detachment from reality. Bunuel masterfully creates a great, surrealistic satire! See more bob c @RT46426964 Nov 12, 2025 Dated but still good. A rather gentle black comedic look at the French bourgeoisie and their allies. Very subtle for the early 1970s and maybe too so for now. See more Stephen C @bob25009 Jun 9, 2025 Funny in 1 2/3 hours!!!!!!!! In Canadian French and English versions with English subtitles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! See more Alain E @AlainE May 29, 2025 An anarchist movie against conventional morals, religion and conservative politics. In the end, every road leads to a dead end. The lone revolutionary is arrested by the police, never to be heard from again. The bishop is called to give the last rites to the murderer of his parents. The military is involved in some ridiculous war games. There is no way out. See more Alejandro E @Alex970 Jul 21, 2024 La aristocracia, retratada con toda la acidez, y surrealismo que hacen distintivo a Buñuel. No se requiere mucho esfuerzo mental para comprender la bizarra odisea que involucra una cena que nunca logra celebrarse. De las indispensables. See more Read all reviews
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Cast & Crew

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Luis Buñuel

Director

Fernando Rey

Don Rafael

Delphine Seyrig

Mme Thevenot

Stéphane Audran

Alice Senechal (as Stephane Audran)

Jean-Pierre Cassel

M. Senechal

Paul Frankeur

M. Thevenot

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The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie

The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972) The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972) The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis The ambassador of the Latin American republic of Miranda (Fernando Rey), M. Thevenot (Paul Frankeur), his wife Simone (Delphine Seyrig) and her sister Florence (Bulle Ogier) arrive for a dinner party at the house of Alice Sénéchal (Stéphane Audran) and her husband Henri (Jean-Pierre Cassel), only to learn that they were mistaken about the date. In director Luis Buñuel's surreal fantasy, the six bourgeois friends repeatedly gather for a dinner that never quite arrives.
Director
Luis Buñuel
Producer
Serge Silberman
Screenwriter
Luis Buñuel, Jean-Claude Carrière
Distributor
Criterion Collection, 20th Century Fox, Media Home Entertainment, Rialto Pictures, Applause Video
Production Co
Dean Film, Greenwich Film Productions, Jet Films S.A.
Rating
PG
Genre
Comedy
Original Language
Canadian French
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 15, 1972, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 8, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$82.5K
Runtime
1h 40m
Sound Mix
Mono
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