"Safe Conduct" (Laissez Passer)
Occupied France was forced to pay enormous sums of money to support their Nazi masters' war effort during the darkest years of World War Two. Daily life had become a struggle for survival and the lines between collaboration and resistance begin to blur. Franco-filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier examines this complicated dilemma by way of his own industry in "Safe Conduct."
Jean Devaivre (Jacques Gamblin) is an assistant director working for Continental Films, the Nazi-controlled propaganda movie making business that dominates French film world. He is also a daring and brave Resistance fighter who actively sabotages the German war machine.
Jean Aurenche (Denis Podalydes) is a screenwriter and lady's man, constantly juggling four or more scripts and his three beautiful mistresses. He has steadfastly found excuses to refuse to work for Continental and his passive resistance to the occupiers is found in his writing.
The lives of these two very different men are the focal points of "Safe Conduct" but the grand sweep of the film covers much more. Tavernier brings us into the French film industry at its darkest, most turbulent times. The onerous demands by the Nazis have left Paris virtually silent. There is no petrol, thus no cars, except for he occasional German vehicle. Food is always in short supply and, as one lady puts it - the war makes it cold in June.
Tavernier and co-scripter Jean Cosmos take the stories of real life French filmmakers and examine the concept of collaboration as a means to survive. But, "Safe Conduct" also deals with how people accept the pay of their overlords while, at the same time, subverting their masters whenever they can. The filmmakers in Boulogne, the heart of the Paris film industry, do their best to not pass on the messages of Nazi propaganda and do so under the very nose of their fascist-controlled boss Dr. Albert Greven (Christian Berkel) and his German keeper, Spaak (Laurent Schilling).
"Safe Conduct" is a sweeping epic of a film that paints a complex picture of the French film business under the Nazis, touching upon many social and political confrontations in both heart and mind. Issues such as survival and freedom examined under the context of war and occupation are given close scrutiny. This is not a movie about justification but of dignity, personified by the two Jeans and the many people around them. They are working for France and not for the Germans and do whatever they can to sabotage the Germans. This is nicely depicted in an extended sequence when Devaivre, suffering from a raging cold, steals confidential German records, is spirited off to England to be debriefed, flies back to France but is forced to parachute into the country. If that isn't enough, he must bicycle (remember, no cars) 380 kilometers back to Paris to be in time for work.
The film is also about pride in your craft and this works both in front of the camera and behind. "Safe Conduct" shows the dedication of the filmmakers to their chosen business and the gratification in creating a work of art in light and shadow. This pride extends to Tavernier and his accomplished crew who imbue the same craftsmanship in the making of this epic tale. There is an old-fashioned quality about the film that harkens back to the time it is telling about, giving the film an elegant quality. The fluid, constantly moving camerawork by Alaine Chouart gives the film a great deal of its energetic appeal. Other production values are of equally high quality.
The talented and huge cast of characters - there are 139 speaking roles - help to give "Safe Conduct" the depth and dimension one would expect in such a deft craftwork. Both Jacques Gamblin and Denis Podalydes are convincing as the two Jeans. Podalydes is outrageously "French" as he openly and lovingly juggles his mistresses, even crying on one's shoulder about his woes with the other two. Gamblin fits the bill in his physically demanding role as Resistance fighting Devaivre. The rest of the fine cast help to give dimension and shading to every performance.
"Safe Conduct" takes you places that have not been explored to this level before (although some may point to Francois Truffaut's "The Last Metro"). It is a long movie at 163 minutes but it fills the time with drama, romance, tragedy, bravery, political intrigue, partisans and sabotage. Viva le Resistance! I give it an A-.
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