If Paris Were Told to Us

If Paris Were Told to Us is a 1956 French historical film written and directed by Sacha Guitry, closely modeled on the format of his earlier picture about the history of Versailles. Rather than telling a single continuous story, it strings together short dramatized vignettes spanning centuries of the city's past, bringing to the screen many of the notable figures and events that shaped the life of the French capital. Guitry assembled a huge roster of the era's leading performers for these vignettes, with Jean Marais appearing alongside stars such as Gérard Philipe, Danielle Darrieux, Michèle Morgan and Louis de Funès. On its release the film drew more than 2.8 million admissions in France, making it one of the more popular historical productions of its time.