Magnificent illustration of French history, with the accent of the legend. The previous comment contains a mistake: THIS IS NOT Louis de Funès playing the part of Bertrand du Guesclin, but Fernand Gravey (the famous Capitaine Fracasse, directed by Abel Gance). Indeed Louis de Funès plays numerous other parts (3) including a semi-villain Spanish captain (Henriquez, if I remember correctly). Noël Roquevert makes a highly believable squire. Many scenes are deeply moving. Casting, writing, directing, and props are worthy of the golden age of French cinema. It must certainly have been a great relief for the French audience to watch this movie after so painful a decade for their fatherland.
4 Reviews
After the war,in need of a hero
dbdumonteil28 October 2009
Bertrand Du Guesclin was one of the two most famous heroes of the Hundred Years' War,the other being of course Joan of Arc who was the subject of so many movies it's impossible to count them all.Du Guesclin,whose career was much longer,did not inspire that much the directors,and this is the one (talkie) and only movie dealing with Le Conétable of King Charles the Fifth.
An user wrote about the legendary side of this historical effort.Bertrand was the black sheep of the family ,never obeying his mother .He was reportedly very ugly,but the actor Fernand Gravey is not! HIstorian Jean Tulard complained about the lack of means ,but this 1949 movie ,made four years after the war -the kind of movie which could not be made during the Occupation days;it was forbidden to show Dreyer's "La Passion De Jeanne D'Arc in the theaters - was made with care and respect for the audience:the English speak English,and French with an accent ,which was not always the case in movies dealing with this interminable war.
Bertrand's story,like Joan's ,is told with a certain sense of mystery:the nun makes prophesies when he is still a boy,they often read his destiny in the stars ,and on his deathbed ,someone takes out his ring "for a young girl who will come from the East".
His story is a long flashback his squire (Noel Roquevert:he was in so many movies from "Antoine ET Antoinette" to "Le Corbeau" to "Fanfan La Tulipe " to "Les Diaboliques" (imdb top 250)that I wonder if there is a French actor who made more movies than he did (maybe Charles Vanel,it's not sure)tells to a desperate crowd gathered in a church as the Prince Noir is besieging the town.
The love scenes between Bertrand and his wife Tiphaine are delicately directed.
An user wrote about the legendary side of this historical effort.Bertrand was the black sheep of the family ,never obeying his mother .He was reportedly very ugly,but the actor Fernand Gravey is not! HIstorian Jean Tulard complained about the lack of means ,but this 1949 movie ,made four years after the war -the kind of movie which could not be made during the Occupation days;it was forbidden to show Dreyer's "La Passion De Jeanne D'Arc in the theaters - was made with care and respect for the audience:the English speak English,and French with an accent ,which was not always the case in movies dealing with this interminable war.
Bertrand's story,like Joan's ,is told with a certain sense of mystery:the nun makes prophesies when he is still a boy,they often read his destiny in the stars ,and on his deathbed ,someone takes out his ring "for a young girl who will come from the East".
His story is a long flashback his squire (Noel Roquevert:he was in so many movies from "Antoine ET Antoinette" to "Le Corbeau" to "Fanfan La Tulipe " to "Les Diaboliques" (imdb top 250)that I wonder if there is a French actor who made more movies than he did (maybe Charles Vanel,it's not sure)tells to a desperate crowd gathered in a church as the Prince Noir is besieging the town.
The love scenes between Bertrand and his wife Tiphaine are delicately directed.
Great Epic!
simondm25 May 2001
We all know what a wonderful actor Louis De Funès is, in this movie he made an excellent performance as the French capitain Bertrand Du Geusclin. This is a nice black and white movie, with good actionscènes and very nice dialogues. But your French should be good, to watch this movie.
Before Joan Of Arc
searchanddestroy-115 March 2024
This story should have been remade, for sure, with bigger budget and more terrific production design. Bertrand Du Guesclin was a true French hero, one century before Joan Of Arc, he also fought against the British armies during the one hundred years war. This is an interesting gem, shot in Black and White, but the directing looks naive, ankward from today's standards. In the sixties, it could have been a good stuff, I am sure. But for those moviegoers who love history, French history material, they won't be deceived. Awesome battle scenes, including castle siege battle. Hollywood would also have made something great.
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