King of Hearts (1966 film)

Le Roi de cœur (original French title) King of Hearts (United States)
U.S. theatrical release poster
Directed by	Philippe de Broca
Written by	Daniel Boulanger (screenplay) Maurice Bessy [fr] (screenwriter)
Produced by	Philipe de Broca
Starring	Alan Bates Geneviève Bujold
Cinematography	Pierre Lhomme
Edited by	Francoise Javet [fr] (II)
Music by	Georges Delerue
Distributed by	Les Productions Artistes Associés United Artists (United States)
Release date	21 December 1966 (1966-12-21)
Running time	102 minutes
Country	France
Languages	French, English, German
Box office	$580,000[1]

King of Hearts (original French title: Le Roi de cœur) is a 1966 French/Italian international co-production comedy-drama film directed by Philippe de Broca and starring Alan Bates and Geneviève Bujold.

The film is set in a small town in France near the end of World War I. As the Imperial German Army retreats, they booby trap the whole town to explode. The locals flee and, left to their own devices, a gaggle of cheerful lunatics escape the asylum and take over the town — thoroughly confusing the lone Scottish soldier who has been dispatched to defuse the bomb.

Though the film is set during WWI, the main message against war which the film pushes is intended to be about the Vietnam war, which France had already been involved in for over a decade at that point. The connection between the "war to end all wars" and the then current conflict would have been obvious to French moviegoers at the time. Likewise its status as a cult film is largely because of its connection to the anti-war movement in the 1960s.