Main Cast: Jean-Marc Barr, Jean Reno, Rosanna Arquette, Griffin Dunne, Paul Shenar, Sergio Castellitto
Release Year: 1988
Country: US/FR
Run Time: 122 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Two men answer the call of the ocean in this romantic fantasy adventure. Jacques (Jean-Marc Barr) and Enzo (Jean Reno) are a pair of friends who have been close since childhood, and who share a passion for the dangerous sport of free diving. Professional diver Jacques opted to follow in the footsteps of his father, who died at sea when Jacques was a boy; to the bewilderment of scientists, Jacques harbors a remarkable ability to adjust his heart rate and breathing pattern in the water, so that his vital signs more closely resemble that of dolphins than men (he even considers a school of dolphins as his extended family). As Enzo persuades a reluctant Jacques to compete against him in a free diving contest - determining who can dive deeper and longer without scuba gear - Jacques meets Johanna (Rosanna Arquette), a beautiful insurance investigator from America, and he finds that he must choose between his love for her and his love of the sea. Le Grand Bleu ran 132 minutes in its original French version, but it was trimmed to 118 for American release, with the original score by Eric Serra replaced by music from Bill Conti. While the film did middling business in the U.S., it was a huge success in Europe, and director Luc Besson released an expanded 168 minute version in 1998. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Jean Bouise - Uncle Louis; Marc Duret - Roberto; Andréas Voutsinas - Priest; Valentina Vargas - Bonita; Kimberly Beck - Sally; Alessandra Vazzoler - Mamma, Enzo's Mother; Bruce Guerre-Berthelot - Young Jacques; Gregory Forstner - Young Enzo; Claude Besson - Jacques' Father; Geoffrey Carey - Supervisor; Pierre-Alain DeGarrigues - Superintendent; Franco Diogene - Receptionist; Patrick Fontana - Alfredo; Paul Herman - Taxi Driver in US; Jacques Levy - Doctor; Constantin Alexandrov - Dolphin Trainer; Claude Robin - Taxi Driver; Rosario Campese - Waiter; Tredessa Dalton - Carol; Eric Do - Japanese Diver; Andre Germe - Filipino Diver; Marika Gevaudan - Angelica; Nicolas Maltos - Diving Coordinator on Platform; Marc Planceon - Paramedic; Jan Rouiller - Noireuter; Peter Semler - Frank; Ronald Teuhi - Tahitian Diver
Credit
Dan Weil - Art Director, Pat Orseth - Casting, Celestia Fox - Casting, Nathalie Cheron - Casting, Blandine Boyer - Costume Designer, Creation Express - Costume Designer, Magali Guidasci - Costume Designer, Malika Khelfa - Costume Designer, Brigitte Nierhaus - Costume Designer, Martine Rapin - Costume Designer, Patricia Saalburg - Costume Designer, Mimi Lempicka - Costume Designer, Luc Besson - Director, Olivier Mauffroy - Editor, Patrice Ledoux - Executive Producer, Bill Conti - Composer (Music Score), Eric Serra - Composer (Music Score), David Forrest - Makeup, Dan Weil - Production Designer, CinemaScope - Cinematographer, Gabor Pogany - Cinematographer, Carlo Varini - Cinematographer, Marc Maurette - Production Manager, Patrice Ledoux - Producer, Patrick Barthelemy - Set Designer, Alain Guille - Special Effects, Gerard Lamps - Sound/Sound Designer, Pierre Befve - Sound/Sound Designer, Luc Besson - Screenwriter, Robert Garland - Screenwriter, Marilyn Goldin - Screenwriter, Jacques Mayol - Screenwriter, Marc Perrier - Screenwriter
Le Grand Bleu was released in France on May 11 1988 and in the United States August 22 1988. It was released in the United States under the name The Big Blue. Luc Besson was initially unsure of who to cast in the main role of Jacques Mayol. He initially offered the role to Christopher Lambert and Mickey Rourke and even considered himself for the role until someone suggested Jean-Marc Barr. Besson has a cameo appearance as one of the divers in the film. Le Grand Bleu was the most financially successful French film of the 1980's and played in French theaters for a year.
Plot
The film charts the competition and friendship of real-life champions Jacques Mayol (played by former model Barr) and Enzo Maiorca (renamed in the film to "Enzo Molinari", and played by Reno). However the divers were not close in age in real life and did not compete. The action is divided into two timelines - the nascent rivalry between the two divers as children, and (as adults) their final competition at the world free-diving championships at the Sicilian town of Taormina. Mayol's search for love, family, "wholeness" and the meaning of life and death is a strong undercurrent of the latter timeline.
With its extensive underwater scenes and languid score (as with nearly all of Luc Besson's films the soundtrack was composed by Éric Serra), the film has been both praised as beautiful and serene, and in equal measure criticised as being dull and uneventful. While popular in Europe, the film was a commercial failure in North America in part due to the studio's[clarification needed] recutting of the movie to include a simplified "happy" ending and the replacement of Serra's score with one composed by Bill Conti. The director later released a longer Director's Cut on DVD, featuring the original ending and an extended version of the Éric Serra score. The film was dedicated to his daughter Juliette Besson who required surgery, having become ill whilst he was working on the film.
A Blu-ray version, containing both the extended and theatrical cuts of the movie, is released on September 14th 2009, but this contains French-dubbed versions of both cuts, rather than the original English language.
The Big Blue was nominated for several César Awards and won Best Music Written for a Film (Éric Serra) and Best Sound in 1989. The film also won France's National Academy of Cinema's Academy Award in 1989.
