L'armée des ombres (1969)

Director:

Jean-Pierre Melville

Writers:

Jean-Pierre Melville (adaptation) and
Joseph Kessel (novel)

Release Date:

12 September 1969 (France)

Genre:

Drama | War

Plot:

France, 1942, during the occupation. Philippe Gerbier, a civil engineer, is one of the French Resistance's chiefs...

Plot Keywords:

French | Camp | Civil Engineer | Resistance | French Resistance

Awards:

3 wins

Cast

Lino Ventura	...	Philippe Gerbier
Paul Meurisse	...	Luc Jardie
Jean-Pierre Cassel	...	Jean François Jardie
Simone Signoret	...	Mathilde
Claude Mann	...	Claude Ullmann dit 'Le Masque'
Paul Crauchet	...	Felix Lepercq
Christian Barbier	...	Guillaume Vermersch dit 'Le Bison'
Serge Reggiani	...	The hairdresser
André Dewavrin	...	Colonel Passy
Alain Dekok	...	Legrain
Alain Mottet	...	Commander of the camp
Alain Libolt	...	Paul Dounat
Jean-Marie Robain	...	Baron de Ferte Talloire
Albert Michel	...	Gendarm
Denis Sadier	...	Gestapo's doctor

Also Known As:

Army in the Shadows
Army of Shadows (USA)
L'armata degli eroi (Italy)
The Shadow Army

Runtime:

Spain:140 min | UK:145 min | USA:145 min | Argentina:145 min

Country:

France | Italy

Language:

French | German | English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono | Dolby Digital (2006 restoration)

Certification:

Iceland:L | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:AA (original rating) | UK:AA (1978) | UK:12A (re-rating) (2005)

Filming Locations:

Avenue Hoche, Paris 8, Paris, France

Company:

Les Films Corona

Trivia:

Cinematographer Pierre Lhomme claimed that the last surviving, watchable print of the movie had turned completely pink with age. He later supervised the 2k resolution, digital restoration of the film at the Eclair Laboratories in Paris.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Gerbier is being taken to the concentration camp at the beginning of the film, and the guard driving the police van makes an unexpected stop at the house, it is clear that the rain is only falling in front of the camera and directly on the van. Only a few feet away, there are no raindrops hitting the mud or the puddles of water.

Quotes:

Jean François Jardie: She said five minutes, but she'll wait a lifetime.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Broken English (2007)

Soundtrack:

Symphony No. 41 (Jupiter)

Seldom Seen Human's in War and Resistance.

I saw this brilliant drama-piece a long time ago and it bound me to my chair. I couldn't move. It is so dramatic and meaningful, and full of betrayal. A choice of life and death never before so condemning in film registered as Jean Pierre Melville himself. He was here recounting his memory as a underground member.

Never before I saw a movie where betrayal had such an impact. I wanted to scream and to help them, but Melville does a little about that.

Spend a lot of nights with bad dreams and a complete loss of human insight.

This masterwork deserves the maximum score. 10*