 Despite now being considered one of the best films made by many  historians, the picture almost became a lost art. Claiming that it  was bad for the morale of the country (due to impending war), the  French government banned the film about a month after its original  release. When Germany took over France the following year, it was  banned by the Nazi party as well, who also burnt many of the prints.  Allied planes then accidentally destroyed the original negatives. It  was thought to be a lost picture. In 1956, some followers of  director Jean Renoir (qv) found enough pieces of the film  scattered throughout France to reconstitute it with Renoirs help.  Renoir claimed only one minor scene was missing from the original  cut.