La vie et rien d'autre (1989)

Intense character study of men and women driven by an overpowering obsession with the past.

Director:

Bertrand Tavernier

Writers:

Jean Cosmos (scenario & adaptation), Bertrand Tavernier (scenario & adaptation)

Stars:

Philippe Noiret, Sabine Azéma, Pascale Vignal

Won 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 8 wins & 14 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Philippe Noiret	...	Major Delaplane
Sabine Azéma	...	Irène de Courtil
Pascale Vignal	...	Alice
Maurice Barrier	...	Mercadot
François Perrot	...	Perrin
Jean-Pol Dubois	...	André
Daniel Russo	...	Lieutenant Trévise
Michel Duchaussoy	...	Général Villerieux
Arlette Gilbert	...	Valentine
Louis Lyonnet	...	Valentin
Charlotte Maury-Sentier	...	Cora Mabel (as Charlotte Maury)
François Caron	...	Julien
Thierry Gimenez	...	L'adjudant du génie
Frédérique Meininger	...	Madame Lebègue
Pierre Trabaud	...	Eugene Dilatoire

Storyline

November, 1920. 350,000 French soldiers remain missing in action. Major Delaplane tirelessly matches the dead and the wounded with families' descriptions. Honor and ethics drive him; he hates the idea of "the unknown soldier." Into his sector, looking for her husband, comes a haughty, politically connected Parisian, Madame Irène de Courtil. Brusquely, Delaplane offers her 1/350,000th of his time, but as their paths cross and she sees his courage and resolve, feelings change. After he finds a surprising connection between her missing husband and a local teacher, Irène makes Delaplane an offer. This man of action hesitates: has he missed his only chance?

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Plot Keywords:

missing in action | french soldier | presumed dead | post world war one | world war one | 

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Taglines:

Un monument!

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

6 September 1989 (France)

Also Known As:

A Vida e Nada Mais

Filming Locations:

Dugny-sur-Meuse, Meuse, France

Box Office

Gross USA:

$428,758

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hachette Première,AB Films,Little Bear

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The part of Irène was originally for Fanny Ardant but she had to decline because of her pregnancy. Bertrand Tavernier then considered Catherine Deneuve, but she'd already co-starred numerous times with Philippe Noiret. The part ended up going to Sabine Azéma.

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Quotes

Major Dellaplane: All antelopes are beautiful. You know why? Because they're scared. Their eyes are black and they're scared. They're right to be. The world is full of jaws.

User Reviews

the aftermath of the 'war to end all wars'

Director Bertrand Tavernier dares to show the true futility of warfare and the hypocrisy behind every call to arms by revealing how the so-called Great War (like every other war before or since) didn't end with an armistice, except of course for the dead. Phillipe Noiret stars as a military statistician assigned to account for the missing and identify the deceased; his expertise is sought by two women, strangers to each other but linked by a terrible secret.

Noiret's character is that rarest of silver screen creatures, a middle-aged hero, and of truly heroic (but no less lifelike) proportions: competent and compassionate while at the same time flawed and uncertain. Over the course of his investigation he discovers firsthand the legacy of state-approved wholesale slaughter, and learns that after four years of bloody trench warfare some graves are best left unturned. With delicate insight and strong but subtle irony the film succeeds in putting a human face on the true victims of any war: not just the dead and disabled, but the civilians caught in the crossfire.