Ménilmontant

Ménilmontant is a neighbourhood in Paris’s 20th arrondissement, perched on a hill just south of Parc de Belleville. Originally a medieval village with vineyards, it was annexed into Paris in 1860. In the following decades it became a vibrant working-class district and in May 1871 turned into a hotspot of radicalism during the Paris Commune.

When the Versailles army reconquered Paris, it encountered fierce resistance in Ménilmontant. Bloody street fighting persisted until the "semaine sanglante" around Père Lachaise. Today the narrow streets and cafés of Ménilmontant remain imbued with historical memory. Street art commemorates communards and political ideals, and the alternative Ménilmontant FC 1871 evokes that turbulent era in its name and crest.

Artists, musicians, and students populate the area, shaping it into a multicultural and creative hub. The neighbourhood also appears in several films. The pioneering silent film Ménilmontant (1926) by Dimitri Kirsanoff was shot entirely in the streets of the district, with no intertitles and an experimental editing style.

In Le Ballon rouge (1956), the magic of Belleville and Ménilmontant unfolds through simple explorations of alleyways and steps—scenes that still evoke emotion if you walk them today. Additionally, The Bourne Identity (2002) features an exciting chase scene filmed on the slopes of Ménilmontant, with a Mini traversing staircases and tight streets in a high-speed pursuit.