Mais où est donc passée la septième compagnie? (1973)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Robert Lamoureux

Writer:

Robert Lamoureux (writer)

Release Date:

13 December 1973 (France)

Genre:

War | Action | Comedy

Plot:

1940: During the chaotic running fights of the French army the 7th company disappears - nobody knows they've been taken captive...

Plot Keywords:

Prisoners Of War | Tow Truck | Disguise | WWII | German Occupation

Cast

Jean Lefebvre	...	Pitivier
Pierre Mondy	...	Sergent Chaudard
Aldo Maccione	...	Tassin
Robert Lamoureux	...	Colonel Blanchet
Pierre Tornade	...	Capitaine Dumont
Jacques Marin	...	L'épicier
Marcelle Ranson-Hervé	...	Mme Thévenay
Erik Colin	...	Lieutenant Duvauchel (as Eric Colin)
Paul Bisciglia	...	Le père
Robert Dalban	...	Le fermier
Alain Doutey	...	Carlier
Magali Vendeuil	...	La mère
Konrad von Bork		(as Conrad Von Bork)
Corinne Lahaye	...	Germaine
François Merlet

Also Known As:

Dov'è finita la 7 compagnia? (Italy)
Mais où est donc passée la 7e compagnie? (France) (alternative spelling)
Now Where Did the Seventh Company Get to? (International: English title)

Runtime:

France:95 min | Italy:90 min

Country:

France | Italy

Language:

French

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-12

Company:

Gaumont International

Movie Connections:

Referenced in JCVD (2008)

Amazing cross-lingual humour

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

I was very impressed with the enduring humour of this film. I watched it in French in which I am not fluent but I still found this film very funny. The phrase 'J'ai glisse, chef' has entered my everyday vocabulary The film follows three hapless soldiers of the French army, who are cut off from the main body of their company by the invading Germans. Through incompetence, laziness and general uselessness they somehow manage to ride to glory and rescue their company.

Despite being thirty years old this film is still delightfully amusing. The French scenery is breathtaking, the characters lovable and the jokes simple enough for even someone who cannot totally understand French to comprehend. It reminded me very much of 'Dad's Army', it's a lighthearted romp through a potentially dangerous subject.

It is not a cinematic masterpiece. The characters are stereotypical idiots, bumbling around falling in rivers, losing their shoes. It is not a deep movie. The plot doesn't really make a lot of sense, and the direction is not memorable. But it was never aiming to be any of these things.

I would class this as a Sunday afternoon film, it's not serious and it's perfect to watch lazily on the sofa with a beer in your hand as Sunday lunch goes down.