Louis Malle's Au Revoir Les Enfants (1987)
After viewing this very moving film, perhaps some of you have had a chance to reflect on it and have some thoughts to express. Feel free to discuss any aspect of the film's production (image, sound, script, performance) or any thoughts on symbolism, story or the cultural context of the film.
SO: Anyone have anything to say? Come on, let's get some discussion happening. Don't be shy.
I thought the acting and the way the the cinematographer captured the two main characters (those long gazes I'm thinking of in particular) worked magically together. Also I thought the blue-gray filter really brought out the gloomy mood of the movie.
ReplyDeleteProduction aside, I think it wouldn't be the same film without such a tragic story behind it - which is especially moving because it's true.
One more thought - at the end, when the nazis enter the schoolroom and the non-jewish boy looks back at kippelstein and gives him up accidentally - that was a heartwrenching and amazingly well done scene.
I was surprised that I had actually seen this film before. This is my first film class, so I thought most of the material would be relatively new to me. When I watched this before I must have been just scanning through the channels on my TV and it caught my attention.
ReplyDeleteI think the film does a good job describing young boys who are coming of age. Julien Quentin is a young boy who is still very attached to his mother, but acts tough in front of his friends, naievely trying to be manly and strong.
Also, at the close of the film when the priest is arrested for harboring jews, and the crowd of young boys starts biding him farewell with loud cries of "Au revoir, mon pere!" the viewer truly feels for the man who was so kind to all of these boys, even risking his life for some. The love and admiration that the boys feel for the man that kept them safe in a time of chaos is truly at its peak in this scene. It is no wonder Julien wants to follow in the priests footsteps and join the clergy.
I've seen this movie several times in the past couple of years and this was the first time I was able to watch it without balling. I agree that it's not a 'sentimental' film, per se, but that's what makes it all the more effective for me. The veneer of normalcy the children try to maintain contrasts nicely with the moments when their fears are revealed i.e. Julien wetting the bed, any of Jean's numerous stun gun looks, and getting lost in the woods. The dialogue itself does not add nuance to the plot as much as Julien's silent, personal moments and discoveries, which I think is a rather unique approach to storytelling. The one bit of dialogue that always strikes me as being painfully revealing is when Julien asks Jean: Are you scared?, and Jean replies: All the time. It's one of the few moments in the film when any of the children talk honestly about their emotions and it's the line that pops into my head whenever there's a close up of Jean, living in constant fear for his life and his family.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed how instead of using poor children, whose lives would have amplified the tragic aspects of the film, Au Revoir les Enfants uses rich kids. The viewer expects from them coldness and selfishness, especially from the popular main character. However, he displays consistent acts of compassion towards his Jewish friend, proving that human nature—specifically our tendency to cling to those we love—grows stronger when its rights are threatened.
ReplyDeleteI found this film very interesting, and very relatable. As previously stated, it was not a “sentimental” film – however, it does fill the viewer with true emotion. I felt as if I were one of the boys in this school. On one level, life is the same as before the war; there is schoolwork, roughhousing, the sneaking of contraband, all of which are normal, relatable aspects of school, even to this day. On another level, there is the looming cloud of WWII. Though none of the children (excepting the Jewish ones) seem in direct danger from Axis power, there is a definite “off” feeling throughout the film (accentuated by the overcast weather and somewhat gritty filming technique). It is not until the end that the danger becomes obvious, and all the more potent because the boys (and the viewer along with them) have been, on some level, dreading the outcome since the beginning of the film. I felt myself becoming immersed in the story and characters in the film, because of the believability and lack of over-sentimentality. This made the experience all the more powerful, because it did not feel like a forced tear-jerker.
ReplyDeleteI've definitely seen this movie before, but i can't remember when. To me, the chemistry between the two main characters was what kept the story pure. You could really see the developing relationship between the boys, and the end made me almost want to cry since they would probably never see each other again (but i don't cry). Even though this story was obviously set during WWII, it was very relatable because we've all gone through experiences like that (maybe not to the extent that your friend has been sentenced to a concentration camp because he/ she is jewish) but we've all left loved ones at some point and time in our lives- and usually sometimes it's the hardest thing that we could ever do. This was a great coming to age film.
ReplyDeleteI've seen this film a few times and it remains as one of my favorites even after seeing it so often. The obvious bias I have might color my comments a bit, but I will try to keep them subjective if I can and not spout off in praise.
ReplyDeleteThe scene in particular that really caught my attention was the one where the older gentleman, who has been attending the same restaurant for over twenty five years or something of that ilk, is confronted. The mother says that he seems like a respectable gentleman, almost as though people have no idea what someone who is Jewish looks like, as if Jewish people would have some sort of defining characteristic like devil horns. She is meant to be what the outside world sees, an impartial view that doesn't take too much stock in the atrocities that occurred and cannot bring themselves down from their trove of riches because they are not directly involved.
For example, a friend of mine complained about the 9/11 attacks because it was delay her cruise. She falsely thought no one she knew was involved, and when someone in her own sphere of existence had been found to be injured, she had sympathy. This is a frightening reality we live in, where people do not understand the weight of things or have compassion for their common man because they are stuck with their heads above a thin layer of fog. Privilege allows this. And that is also why this story is so special.
The two main characters forge a friendship because of their differences, not because of their similarities, but their relationship is not constructed in a way that makes it feel inorganic or forced. The viewer can then be that impartial eye as they watch, initially, like the mother was, but because they are following the story of these two boys they become sympathetic of their own accord. This is not a lifetime movie hallmark station force-fed bout of angst. This is not harrowing realism that bangs you over the head to the point where you don't care anymore. It allows free association of feeling. The boys are sympathetic characters, but they do not try to pull it from you. They have their flaws, their faults, and that is why they are so human. And endearing.
The choice to have the cook's assistant rat them out in the end was apparent at the beginning but felt genuine. I see a reflection of his character in how some people actually view the Jewish--as having control over the economy (in this case, of a boy's school) and prescribing to greed. But this is a falsity, all humans are greedy to an extent. Not one religious group over all others. He is a character to juxtapose against Bonnet. The real versus the perceived.
The ending always gets me. I can't help but become glassy eyed when they exchange glances and then Bonnet is taken away. He lingers at that door. And the disbelief and tears in his friend's eyes, the shock of it all, you feel it with him.
I obviously love this film.
Great comments, everyone!!!
ReplyDeleteBoth Sarah and Gretchen make very insightful comments on how the film manages to be moving without being overly sentimental. I have never understood why films on the holocaust resort to cheap sentiment; there's no need.
Kira, good points all; as for your friend, I tend to think there are two kinds of people in the world: those who have compassion for all humans, and those who really only care about themselves ad their immediate circle of family and friends. Certainly WW2 forced many Europeans to think outside of their own experience as the war was "brought home" to so many of them (witness the bombings in England for example, portrayed in many diverse films such as Slaughterhouse Five, Hope and Glory, Atonement, The Big Red One, etc. )
Au Revoir Les Enfants is such a moving film. I’ve always enjoyed period films like this especially from a child’s point of view. I have a strong admiration for this film not only for the tragedy it stands for; but because it reminded me of my own father. He was born in Germany right after WWII and also lived away from his mother in a catholic school just like the one in the film. He wasn’t in an unfortunate predicament as the character Jean was in; however, I could imagine my dad playing as a school boy, in class, and going to sleep in the same manner as the children in the film.
ReplyDeleteThe other day I asked my father if he and the other children use to trade things like food and such; He said, “Yes, things like jam all the time.” I laughed so hard! Seeing as the boys in the film did the exact same. This great film touched me on a personal level which made me appreciate it even more and had a lasting impact after it was over.