Au hasard Balthazar

1966
PG
1h 35m

IMDb RATING

7.7/10

23K

YOUR RATING

Anne Wiazemsky in Au hasard Balthazar (1966)

The story of a mistreated donkey and the people around him. A study on saintliness and a sister piece to Bresson's Mouchette.

Play trailer1:33

1 Video

80 Photos

Epic Psychological Drama Tragedy Drama

The story of a mistreated donkey and the people around him. A study on saintliness and a sister piece to Bresson's Mouchette.The story of a mistreated donkey and the people around him. A study on saintliness and a sister piece to Bresson's Mouchette.The story of a mistreated donkey and the people around him. A study on saintliness and a sister piece to Bresson's Mouchette.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.7/10

23K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 7 wins & 2 nominations

Videos1

Trailer 1:33

Trailer [OV]

Photos80

+ 74

More like this

7.7

Mouchette

7.6

Pickpocket

7.7

Diary of a Country Priest

8.2

A Man Escaped

7.4

L'argent

7.4

The Trial of Joan of Arc

7.1

The Devil, Probably

7.3

Four Nights of a Dreamer

7.8

7.3

7.6

8.2

Storyline

Edit

Did you know

Edit

Trivia
Balthazar was an untrained donkey during most of the filming, which made Robert Bresson's work a real challenge. The only scene for which the donkey was trained was the circus math trick.

Goofs
In the very last shot of the film the shadow of the camera man or someone else enters the picture from the bottom right.

Quotes
Gerard: Lend him to us.
Marie's mother: He's worked enough. He's old. He's all I have.
Gerard: Just for a day.
Marie's mother: Besides, he's a saint.

Alternate versions
Restored in 2014 from the original 35mm negative by the Éclair Group and L.E. Diapason.

Connections
Edited into Histoire(s) du cinéma: Seul le cinéma (1994)

Soundtracks
Piano Sonata No.20 in A Major, II. Andantino (D. 959)
Music by Franz Schubert
Performed by Jean-Joël Barbier

User reviews110

Review

Featured review

8/10

Must see...

This is a very important film. It makes you look into yourself and examine your own worth.

The world is not a fair place to live in. It has its own social structures and with each their is a certain perception of worth. Robert Bresson displays these perceptions from the bottom up.

Much like Vittorio DeSica's Umberto D, this film intertwines the relationship between man and beast. But who is the beast? It's society.

With images shot in crisp black and white Robert Bresson reveals the sordidness of the human soul, how cruel, selfish, pathetic, and unjust it can be. Au Hasard Balthazar is not an easy film to watch, but its honesty and approach towards society's injustices make it a must see.