# The Chorus (2004 film)
**The Chorus** (French: *Les Choristes*) is a 2004 French drama directed by Christophe Barratier, in which an unemployed music teacher, Clément Mathieu, arrives in 1949 at a harsh reform boarding school called Fond de l'Étang and transforms the lives of its troubled pupils by founding a choir. It was Barratier's first feature film, freely adapted from Jean Dréville's 1945 film *La Cage aux rossignols*, with music by Bruno Coulais performed by the boys' choir Les Petits Chanteurs de Saint-Marc.[1](https://www.pathefilms.com/fr/films/les-choristes/) • [2](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/855-chorists) • [3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-dec-22-et-chorus22-story.html)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| French release | 17 March 2004; 95 minutes; comedy drama; distributed by Pathé Distribution[1](https://www.pathefilms.com/fr/films/les-choristes/) |
| Director | Christophe Barratier, his first feature; screenplay with Philippe Lopes-Curval[1](https://www.pathefilms.com/fr/films/les-choristes/) • [4](https://mediakwest.com/entretien-avec-le-realisateur-christophe-barratier/) |
| Source | Freely inspired by *La Cage aux rossignols* (1945), directed by Jean Dréville[2](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/855-chorists) |
| Principal cast | Gérard Jugnot (Clément Mathieu), François Berléand (Rachin), Jean-Baptiste Maunier (Pierre Morhange), Kad Merad, Marie Bunel, Maxence Perrin[1](https://www.pathefilms.com/fr/films/les-choristes/) |
| Music | Bruno Coulais; the on-screen choir is Les Petits Chanteurs de Saint-Marc[1](https://www.pathefilms.com/fr/films/les-choristes/) • [3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-dec-22-et-chorus22-story.html) |
| Awards | Academy Award nominations for Best Foreign Language Film and Best Original Song ("Look to Your Path" / "Vois sur ton chemin"); two César Awards from eight nominations[5](https://sightlines.media/film/5528/the-chorus-2004) • [6](https://www.academie-cinema.org/films/les-choristes-29505/) |
| Box office | $83,525,626 worldwide against a reported $5,500,000 production budget[7](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Choristes-Les) |
## Spoilers
### Plot and setting
The story is set in January 1949, a postwar period in which France, dealing with children orphaned or troubled after the Occupation, maintained a network of reform schools run on strict disciplinary principles.[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-dec-22-et-chorus22-story.html) Clément Mathieu, an unsuccessful composer, takes a job as supervisor at Fond de l'Étang ("bottom of the pond", or rock bottom), a rundown 19th-century country academy with 60 predominantly adolescent pupils.[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-dec-22-et-chorus22-story.html) The headmaster, Rachin, applies particularly repressive methods and struggles to keep authority over the difficult students.[1](https://www.pathefilms.com/fr/films/les-choristes/)
**The choir.** Mathieu, appalled by his new environment, gradually wins the boys' trust, in part by not reporting their infractions to the headmaster and designing his own milder punishments instead.[8](https://www.reelviews.net/reelviews/chorus-the) He marshals the boys into a choir, hopeless at first, and shapes it into a singing ensemble.[9](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/the-chorus-film-review-by-paul-griffiths) His efforts have a particular impact on Pierre Morhange, a pupil who shows great musical promise.[10](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/chorus_les_choristes) Pierre's single mother Violette, a waitress, shares her concern for her son's well-being with Mathieu.[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-dec-22-et-chorus22-story.html)
The film is told in flashback. It opens with the adult Pierre Morhange, now a famous conductor played by Jacques Perrin, learning of his mother's death and being visited by Pépinot, an old classmate he has not seen in some fifty years; the encounter awakens his memories of Mathieu.[11](https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/16427) • [12](https://repertoire.cinema.mcc.gouv.qc.ca/film/les-choristes-231379/) Jacques Perrin also served as one of the film's producers.[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-dec-22-et-chorus22-story.html)
## Production
Barratier came to filmmaking from music: he is a classically trained guitarist, a concert-license graduate of the École Normale de Musique de Paris and a prize-winner in several international competitions. He made a first short film, *Les Tombales* (2001), adapted from a [Guy de Maupassant](https://www.edgepedia.org/guy-de-maupassant) text, before directing *Les Choristes* as his first feature.[13](https://galateefilms.com/wp-content/uploads/2004/03/choristes.pdf) He finished the screenplay in 2002 and production began in late 2003.[4](https://mediakwest.com/entretien-avec-le-realisateur-christophe-barratier/) In an interview he put the budget at around three million euros,[4](https://mediakwest.com/entretien-avec-le-realisateur-christophe-barratier/) while the box-office database The Numbers lists a production budget of $5,500,000.[7](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Choristes-Les)
The film was a Franco-Swiss co-production by Galatée Films, Pathé Renn Productions, France 2 Cinéma, Novo Arturo Films and Vega Film, produced by Jacques Perrin, Arthur Cohn and Nicolas Mauvernay.[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-dec-22-et-chorus22-story.html) It was shot in the Puy-de-Dôme and Lozère departments, in the Auvergne and Occitanie regions.[14](https://www.crew-united.com/fr/Les-Choristes__328249.html) Barratier acknowledged that the dictatorial headmaster Rachin, played by François Berléand, could be interpreted as a Pétain figure; the film was shot near the seat of the Vichy state's government and set just after the war.[15](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/christophe-barratier-a-noteworthy-debut-527897.html)
## Music
Bruno Coulais composed the score, and Barratier, drawing on his musical background, wrote several of the pieces that Mathieu composes in the story.[9](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/the-chorus-film-review-by-paul-griffiths) The singing heard throughout the film is by Les Petits Chanteurs de Saint-Marc, a boys' choir.[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-dec-22-et-chorus22-story.html) The song "Vois sur ton chemin" ("Look to Your Path") earned one of the film's two Academy Award nominations, for Best Original Song.[5](https://sightlines.media/film/5528/the-chorus-2004) Reviewers singled out the score: the [Toronto Star](https://www.edgepedia.org/toronto-star) credited the film's "outstanding score" with lifting it above feelgood status,[10](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/chorus_les_choristes) and the young soloist Jean-Baptiste Maunier was widely praised for his voice.[16](https://nowtoronto.com/movies/songs-the-same/)
## Reception
The film was a runaway hit in France and the country's official Oscar entry.[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-dec-22-et-chorus22-story.html) [Le Monde](https://www.edgepedia.org/le-monde) later grouped it with *Amélie* (2001), *Astérix et Obélix: Mission Cléopâtre* (2002) and *Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis* (2008) as popular French successes that had received a lukewarm reception in that newspaper's own columns.[17](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/culture/article/2024/05/21/french-cinematic-history-through-the-lens-of-le-monde-s-critics_6672202_30.html) For a French-language film, it showed remarkable international reach, being distributed throughout Europe and Asia, where it did especially well, as well as in the United States via Miramax.[5](https://sightlines.media/film/5528/the-chorus-2004) Miramax gave it a limited American release on 26 November 2004 under the title The Chorus; it grossed $3,629,758 domestically and $83,525,626 worldwide.[7](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Choristes-Les)
**Critical split.** Aggregated scores reflect a divided response: 68 percent on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer from 105 reviews, with a 92 percent audience score, and a Metacritic metascore of 56 from 32 reviews.[10](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/chorus_les_choristes) • [18](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0372824/criticreviews/) Mainstream critics praised its warmth, performances and music; Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times called it "a well-nigh irresistible film celebrating the redemptive power of music".[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-dec-22-et-chorus22-story.html) A significant strand of more demanding French and international critics found it manipulative, conservative and overly sentimental; Manohla Dargis of The New York Times described "a deeply conventional story about truculent or orphaned boys and the gentle soul who finds himself by shaping the tots into a chorus", and the Village Voice called it "the cinematic equivalent of filtered water".[5](https://sightlines.media/film/5528/the-chorus-2004) • [18](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0372824/criticreviews/) Reviewers repeatedly noted the film's place in the inspirational-teacher genre, comparing it to *Mr. Holland's Opus*, *Dead Poets Society* and *Sister Act 2*.[8](https://www.reelviews.net/reelviews/chorus-the) • [16](https://nowtoronto.com/movies/songs-the-same/)
## Awards and legacy
At the 2005 [César Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/cesar-awards) the film received eight nominations and won two Césars, for Best Music Written for a Film (Bruno Coulais) and Best Sound (Nicolas Cantin, Nicolas Naegelen and Daniel Sobrino); it was nominated but did not win in the major categories, including Best Film, Best Director and Best Actor for Gérard Jugnot.[6](https://www.academie-cinema.org/films/les-choristes-29505/) It was nominated for two Academy Awards, Best Foreign Language Film and Best Original Song, and for a Golden Globe as best foreign-language film.[5](https://sightlines.media/film/5528/the-chorus-2004) • [19](https://www.alianzafrancesaxalapa.edu.mx/mediateca/pdf/catalogue-films.pdf) It also captured the Crystal Heart Award at the 2004 Heartland Film Festival in [Indianapolis](https://www.edgepedia.org/indianapolis).[20](https://theindependentcritic.com/chorus)
The film's most durable legacy has been musical and cultural rather than stylistic. It launched Jean-Baptiste Maunier and Les Petits Chanteurs de Saint-Marc to fame, made Coulais's melodies genuinely popular, and its songs entered the choral repertoire performed by children's choirs well beyond France. Alongside *Amélie*, it stands as a reference point in discussions of French heritage cinema and the international market for exportable French nostalgia.[5](https://sightlines.media/film/5528/the-chorus-2004) For its twentieth anniversary, the film returned to French cinemas on 10 April 2024 in a restored 4K version.[21](https://www.offi.fr/cinema/evenement/les-choristes-5690.html)
## References
1. [Les Choristes, Pathé Films](https://www.pathefilms.com/fr/films/les-choristes/)
2. [Chorists, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/855-chorists)
3. [Finely balanced voices of postwar France, Los Angeles Times (22 December 2004)](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-dec-22-et-chorus22-story.html)
4. [Entretien avec le réalisateur Christophe Barratier, Mediakwest](https://mediakwest.com/entretien-avec-le-realisateur-christophe-barratier/)
5. [The Chorus (2004), dir. Christophe Barratier — analysis, influences and similar films, Sightlines](https://sightlines.media/film/5528/the-chorus-2004)
6. [Les choristes, Académie des César](https://www.academie-cinema.org/films/les-choristes-29505/)
7. [Les Choristes (2004) — Box Office and Financial Information, The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Choristes-Les)
8. [Chorus, The, Reelviews Movie Reviews](https://www.reelviews.net/reelviews/chorus-the)
9. [The Chorus (2004) Movie Review, Eye for Film](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/the-chorus-film-review-by-paul-griffiths)
10. [The Chorus, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/chorus_les_choristes)
11. [Chorus (Les Choristes), The, DVD Talk](https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/review/16427)
12. [Les choristes, Répertoire des films classés, Québec](https://repertoire.cinema.mcc.gouv.qc.ca/film/les-choristes-231379/)
13. [Christophe Barratier, Galatée Films press kit](https://galateefilms.com/wp-content/uploads/2004/03/choristes.pdf)
14. [Les Choristes, Crew United](https://www.crew-united.com/fr/Les-Choristes__328249.html)
15. [Christophe Barratier: A noteworthy debut, The Independent (11 March 2005)](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/christophe-barratier-a-noteworthy-debut-527897.html)
16. [Song's the same, NOW Magazine (27 January 2005)](https://nowtoronto.com/movies/songs-the-same/)
17. [French cinematic history through the lens of Le Monde's critics, Le Monde (21 May 2024)](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/culture/article/2024/05/21/french-cinematic-history-through-the-lens-of-le-monde-s-critics_6672202_30.html)
18. [The Chorus — Metacritic reviews, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0372824/criticreviews/)
19. [Les choristes, Alianza Francesa Xalapa film catalogue](https://www.alianzafrancesaxalapa.edu.mx/mediateca/pdf/catalogue-films.pdf)
20. [The Chorus Review, The Independent Critic](https://theindependentcritic.com/chorus)
21. [Les Choristes, L'Officiel des spectacles](https://www.offi.fr/cinema/evenement/les-choristes-5690.html)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Musical and music films (individual works) › Musical films of the 1990s and 2000s*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license