After talking to a number of fellow IMDbers about French cinema during The Occupation of France in WWII,I decided to watch 5 films which would show the effect that the beginning of the invasion in France,the Occupation itself, and the ending of the Occupation had on French cinema.
Whilst struggling to find a title that could act as a starting point,I picked up an old dusty copy of a UK film mag called Empire,and I spotted a DVD review for a 1939 French Film Noir which had been banned by the Vichy govt, (which also cut some scenes from the film,that thankfully survive)due to it being "demoralizing" which led to me getting ready to see the sun go up.
View on the film:
Surviving the censorship of the Vichy govt and an attempt by RKO to destroy every known copy, Studiocanal delivers an elegant transfer,with the 2 minutes of cut footage being seamlessly re- instated,and the audio/picture quality being crystal clear.
Rumbaing behind the stark background of the opening credits,the score by Maurice Jaubert creates a superb undercurrent mood for the title,as Jaubert keeps the score light & breezy during François's blossoming romance,which transforms into a bellowing shriek,as François sinks into a Film Noir dead end.
Made just before the country fell to Hitler,the screenplay by Jacques Viot and Jacques Prévert brilliantly displays the impending darkness that France was about to enter,as the writers show the police to be faceless figures who attempt to "gas" François out of the building,and stop anyone from criticising the government.
Along with the ruthless shots at the police and government,the writers smartly take a Film Noir route to reveal the unease that France was experiencing,as François and Valentin spy/listen in on those nearest to them,whilst the Film Noir loner François becomes a hero to the crowds standing outside the guest-house,as François yells that he wants to be left alone in his flat,where he can lock his door to the despair taking place outside.
Showing Valentin's stairway to death with a hard stare which makes the viewer feel every thud that his dying body makes on the steps,director Marcel Carné unleashes a chilling Film Noir atmosphere,as long,winding shots around the guest-house,and tightly coiled whip-pans in François flat show the doom-laden mind-set that François has entered.
Delicately using flashbacks, Carné creates a contrasting feel to the bleak Film Noir world that François is now locked in,by giving the scenes with Clara & Françoise a stark,shining lightness which represents the relax mood that François feels around them,which slowly transforms into a brittle darkness,as Valentin starts attempting to wipe François from his two dream girls.
Sharing a mutual desire for François's love,the gorgeous Arletty (who destroyed her career by having an affair with a high-ranking Nazi,and spending most of the Occupation going to fancy dinners held by the Nazis) and Jacqueline Laurent (who in a banned scene appears topless!) each give beautiful performances as Françoise and Clara,with Laurent showing a genuine sweetness in Françoise's desire for her past with Valentin to be left in the dark mists of time.
Arletty lights up the screen as striking Femme Fatale Clara,whose mask of acceptance over François fight for his "true love" Françoise breaks,as Clara finds herself being pushed to the wilderness by Valentin & François.With Carné sealing his fate by filling him with bullets in the tense opening, Jules Berry gives a wonderful performance as Valentin,thanks to Berry turning Valentin's charm into sharp manipulation ,as Valentin finds François trying to take all that is his.
Sealed in his prison cell/flat, Jean Gabin gives an explosive performance as François,with Gabin hitting a light touch with an expert eye in François's blossoming romance with Françoise,which is haunted by the bleak, burning rage that François's fate is now trapped in,as François looks out of the window in his flat,for hope that daybreak will appear from the darkness.
Whilst struggling to find a title that could act as a starting point,I picked up an old dusty copy of a UK film mag called Empire,and I spotted a DVD review for a 1939 French Film Noir which had been banned by the Vichy govt, (which also cut some scenes from the film,that thankfully survive)due to it being "demoralizing" which led to me getting ready to see the sun go up.
View on the film:
Surviving the censorship of the Vichy govt and an attempt by RKO to destroy every known copy, Studiocanal delivers an elegant transfer,with the 2 minutes of cut footage being seamlessly re- instated,and the audio/picture quality being crystal clear.
Rumbaing behind the stark background of the opening credits,the score by Maurice Jaubert creates a superb undercurrent mood for the title,as Jaubert keeps the score light & breezy during François's blossoming romance,which transforms into a bellowing shriek,as François sinks into a Film Noir dead end.
Made just before the country fell to Hitler,the screenplay by Jacques Viot and Jacques Prévert brilliantly displays the impending darkness that France was about to enter,as the writers show the police to be faceless figures who attempt to "gas" François out of the building,and stop anyone from criticising the government.
Along with the ruthless shots at the police and government,the writers smartly take a Film Noir route to reveal the unease that France was experiencing,as François and Valentin spy/listen in on those nearest to them,whilst the Film Noir loner François becomes a hero to the crowds standing outside the guest-house,as François yells that he wants to be left alone in his flat,where he can lock his door to the despair taking place outside.
Showing Valentin's stairway to death with a hard stare which makes the viewer feel every thud that his dying body makes on the steps,director Marcel Carné unleashes a chilling Film Noir atmosphere,as long,winding shots around the guest-house,and tightly coiled whip-pans in François flat show the doom-laden mind-set that François has entered.
Delicately using flashbacks, Carné creates a contrasting feel to the bleak Film Noir world that François is now locked in,by giving the scenes with Clara & Françoise a stark,shining lightness which represents the relax mood that François feels around them,which slowly transforms into a brittle darkness,as Valentin starts attempting to wipe François from his two dream girls.
Sharing a mutual desire for François's love,the gorgeous Arletty (who destroyed her career by having an affair with a high-ranking Nazi,and spending most of the Occupation going to fancy dinners held by the Nazis) and Jacqueline Laurent (who in a banned scene appears topless!) each give beautiful performances as Françoise and Clara,with Laurent showing a genuine sweetness in Françoise's desire for her past with Valentin to be left in the dark mists of time.
Arletty lights up the screen as striking Femme Fatale Clara,whose mask of acceptance over François fight for his "true love" Françoise breaks,as Clara finds herself being pushed to the wilderness by Valentin & François.With Carné sealing his fate by filling him with bullets in the tense opening, Jules Berry gives a wonderful performance as Valentin,thanks to Berry turning Valentin's charm into sharp manipulation ,as Valentin finds François trying to take all that is his.
Sealed in his prison cell/flat, Jean Gabin gives an explosive performance as François,with Gabin hitting a light touch with an expert eye in François's blossoming romance with Françoise,which is haunted by the bleak, burning rage that François's fate is now trapped in,as François looks out of the window in his flat,for hope that daybreak will appear from the darkness.