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
Georges Sellier	...	Colonel Jarret du Plessis
Marco Perrin	...	Octave Bonnafous
Hubert de Lapparent	...	Aubert, Pharmacien
Colin Mann	...	Dispatcher
Anthony Stuart	...	R.A.F. Major
Michel Fretault	...	Anonymous Patriot
Gérard-Antoine Huart		(as Gérard Huart)
Percival Russel
Michel Dacquin
Jeanne Pérez
Pierre Vaudier
Jacques Marbeuf
Franz Sauer
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Adrien Cayla-Legrand	...	Général De Gaulle (uncredited)
Nathalie Delon	...	Une amie de Jean-François (uncredited)

Directed by
Jean-Pierre Melville

Writing credits
Jean-Pierre Melville		(adaptation)
Joseph Kessel		novel

Produced by
Jacques Dorfmann	....	producer

Original Music by
Éric Demarsan		(as Eric De Marsan)

Cinematography by
Pierre Lhomme
Walter Wottitz

Film Editing by
Françoise Bonnot

Production Design by
Théobald Meurisse

Set Decoration by
Théobald Meurisse

Costume Design by
Colette Baudot		(as Madame Colette Baudot)

Makeup Department
Maud Begon	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Alain Quefféléan	....	production manager (as A. Quefféléan)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jean-François Adam	....	assistant director (as J.F. Adam)
Georges Pellegrin	....	assistant director (as G. Pellegrin)
Jean-Claude Ventura	....	assistant director (as J.C. Ventura)

Art Department
Marc Desages	....	second assistant set decorator
Henri Sonois	....	first assistant set decorator (as Enriqué Sonnois)
Roger Volper	....	property master
Ferracci	....	poster designer (uncredited)

Sound Department
Jacques Carrère	....	sound director
Jean Nény	....	sound director (as Jean Neni)
Alex Pront	....	sound director
Victor Revelli	....	boom operator

Special Effects by
Walter Wottitz	....	special photographic effects

Visual Effects by
Georges Tornero	....	restoration (restored version)

Camera and Electrical Department
Philippe Brun	....	camera operator
Pierre Li	....	first assistant camera
Jacques Renard	....	second assistant camera
Raymond Voinquel	....	still photographer
Walter Wottitz	....	camera operator: aerial unit
Walter Wottitz	....	camera operator: underwater unit

Music Department
Robert Pouret	....	music editor
Bob Vatel	....	musician: piano

Other crew
Betty Elvira	....	script girl
Jean-Pierre Spiri-Mercanton	....	general manager (as J.P. Spiri-Mercanton)
Howard Vernon	....	dialogue: English

Production Companies

• Les Films Corona
• Fono Roma

Distributors

• Valoria Films (1969) (France) (theatrical)
• Studio Canal (2007) (France) (DVD) (HD DVD) (restored version)
• ABC-Kinot (1971) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Rialto Pictures (2006) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Criterion Collection, The (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Universal Pictures Finland Oy (2006) (Finland) (DVD)

Special Effects

• Eurocitel

Other Companies

• Warmflash Productions Ltd.  trailer
• Warmflash Productions  trailer

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 | Singapore:PG | 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:

For the shot depicting German soldiers marching down the Champs Elysees, Jean-Pierre Melville thought that it would be impossible to get regular Frenchmen to provide the proper marching movements. He ended up casting dancers to correctly provide the march steps he wanted from the soldiers. This shot was originally the last in the film and prints were sent to theaters with it in that place. After the first showings, Melville decided the scene was better placed at the start of the film and it was physically spliced into the new position. This apparently resulted in several missing frames in the negative. These frames were restored from another source when the 2005 digital restoration was accomplished.

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:

Philippe Gerbier: See you later, Comrade.
Legrain: ...You're a communist?
Philippe Gerbier: No. But I can still have comrades.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Broken English (2007)

Soundtrack:

Symphony No. 41 (Jupiter)

Outstanding--but brutal--film

"L'Armée des ombres" (1969) was shown in the U.S as "Army of Shadows." The film is co-written and directed by Jean-Pierre Melville.

The time is 1942 and the setting is France. Lino Ventura plays Philippe Gerbier, a high-ranking officer in the French resistance. Gerbier is intelligent, resourceful, and brave. He and his small band of urban fighters are constantly in danger of capture and torture by the Nazis. This isn't a film of rural partisans--it's a film where people meet in cafés and offices. No one knows when Nazi soldiers or Gestapo will sweep down and drag them off. No meeting is safe, and no relationship is safe either--how many people can remain silent under savage tortures that go on for days?

Although Ventura is excellent in the role, the movie is dominated by Simone Signoret as Mathilde--tougher and braver than any of the men, but possessing one terrible weakness.

This movie is different than most films about the French Resistance. Things don't go smoothly, they don't go well, fear is everywhere, and heroism often takes place in a prison cell where no one ever learns of it. It's fascinating, but grim.

"Army of Shadows" is a neglected film by a great director. It's definitely worth seeking out.