For the uninitiated, The Young Girls of Rochefort takes place over a single weekend in the sleepy port town of Rochefort, France. Twin sisters Delphine (Catherine Deneuve) and Solange (Françoise Dorléac—Deneuve’s real-life sister, in an achingly beautiful time capsule) dream of leaving their provincial life for the glitter of Paris. Delphine wants love; Solange wants fame as a composer.
Released on Blu-ray and DVD, the Criterion edition features a 4K digital restoration (supervised by cinematographer Jean Rabier before his passing). The difference is staggering. Rabier shot the film in Eastmancolor, a stock notoriously difficult to preserve. On older transfers, the pastels of Rochefort’s town square looked sickly. On the Criterion transfer, however, the oranges are electric, the turquoises are deep, and the primary reds of the twins’ wardrobe pop with three-dimensional depth.
The production team repainted over 40,000 square meters of real building facades in vibrant shades of pink, blue, yellow, and white to match the film’s candy-colored palette. The Young Girls of Rochefort -1967- Criterion -...
Following the massive international success of The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964), Demy wanted to expand his canvas. Where Umbrellas was a somber, completely sung "pop-opera," Rochefort was envisioned as a traditional Hollywood tribute—complete with spoken dialogue, soaring dance numbers, and an overwhelming sense of optimism.
Decades after its release, The Young Girls of Rochefort continues to inspire modern cinema, serving as a direct blueprint for contemporary musicals like Damien Chazelle’s La La Land . Through Criterion’s immaculate preservation, Demy’s pastel dreamscape remains perfectly intact, inviting new generations to step into the sun-drenched streets of Rochefort and fall in love all over again. Share public link For the uninitiated, The Young Girls of Rochefort
Michel Legrand’s jazz-infused score is the driving heartbeat of the film. Unlike Cherbourg , which was entirely sung-through, Rochefort balances spoken dialogue with massive, energetic musical numbers. Legrand blends classical orchestrations with modern American jazz, creating complex, infectious melodies. The standout track, "Chanson des Jumelles" (A Pair of Twins), establishes the sisters' witty, vibrant chemistry immediately. The Inclusion of Gene Kelly
The Criterion Collection's release of The Young Girls of Rochefort (available both individually and as part of the essential The Essential Jacques Demy box set) is a masterclass in film preservation. Released on Blu-ray and DVD, the Criterion edition
The onscreen chemistry between Delphine and Solange is unmatched because Catherine Deneuve and Françoise Dorleac were real-life sisters. Tragically, Dorleac died in a car accident just months after the film’s release. This heartbreaking reality retroactively tints the film’s exuberant optimism with a layer of poignant nostalgia, turning Rochefort into a permanent monument to Dorleac’s immense talent and radiant screen presence. The Criterion Treatment: Visual and Audio Restoration