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IMDb 6.9 HD

The Great Arch

2025 1 h 44 min Drama · History · Biography L'Inconnu de la Grande Arche

A Copenhagen architecture teacher upends the French establishment when he wins the contest to build La Grande Arche, then fights to keep his design intact.

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About the film

What it’s about

In 1983, President François Mitterrand launches an international competition for a monumental arch in the La Défense district, aligned with the Louvre and the Arc de Triomphe. The surprise winner is Johan Otto von Spreckelsen, a 53-year-old architecture teacher from Copenhagen. He moves to Paris to lead the project, determined to realize his design exactly as imagined, but his ideas collide with technical limits and political maneuvering.

What hooks you

Stéphane Demoustier directs a cast led by Claes Bang as von Spreckelsen, with Sidse Babett Knudsen as Liv von Spreckelsen and Xavier Dolan as Jean-Louis Subilon. The film won two César awards, for visual effects and production design, and received nominations for best director, best actor, best supporting actor, and best adapted screenplay.

Who it’s for

It suits viewers who like true stories of creative ambition, the clash between artistic vision and bureaucracy, and drama grounded in real historical events.

Technical details
Countries
Denmark, France
Year
2025
Genres
Drama, History, Biography
Running time
1h 44min
World premiere
May 16, 2025
Box office (world)$2,160,095

Ratings

MOVIE․ONE · 229 votes
7.0 /10
IMDb
6.91,200
Kinopoisk
7.3365
Your rating —
— /10
1 · Didn't land 10 · Masterpiece

Creative team

All 10
Director Stéphane Demoustier
Starring
  1. 01 Claes Bang Otto von Spreckelsen
  2. 02 Sidse Babett Knudsen Liv von Spreckelsen
  3. 03 Xavier Dolan Jean-Louis Subilon
  4. 04 Swann Arlaud Paul Andreu
  5. 05 Michel Fau François Mitterrand
  6. 06 Micha Lescot Leloup
  7. 07 Jean des Forêts Alain Juppé
  8. 08 Ilaria Cabras Actor
  9. 09 Alessandro Bressanello The marble worker

Awards and nominations

2 wins 4 nominations

All
  1. 2 wins Cesar Awards 2026 · 4 nominations
Top wins
  1. Best Visual Effects Cesar Awards · 2026
  2. Best production design Cesar Awards · 2026

Reviews

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