L'armee des Ombres: Review

Every once in a while, a film comes along that warrants unbridled celebration and demands a large audience. Unfortunately, for L'armee des Ombres (Army of Shadows), Jean Pierre Melville's look at the French Resistance in WWII, that audience seemed forever elusive, largely due to the fact that it had never seen much play outside of its native France, despite its release date of September 12, 1969. That is, until last April, when it finally saw release in US theatres, thankfully allowing American audiences to experience a true masterpiece and one of the finest films of the past 50 years. This is no exaggeration, as Army of Shadows is Melville's crowning achievement, a deeply nuanced and compassionate film that heroically portrays the brave struggles of the French freedom fighters in a realistic and moving manner. Led by Lino Ventura and the rest of the spectacular cast, Melville's vision is an impeccable creation of gripping tension, leaving the audience emotionally and mentally exhausted by film's end.

Melville, who has been widely praised for his wonderful crime thrillers Le Samourai and Le Cercle Rouge, ventures into his past for this story of the French Resistance. As someone who was involved with the resistance, Melville's personal experiences shine through the film, creating a stunningly realistic depiction of the men and women who gave their lives for their (occupied) country. Melville clearly understood the inner workings of these freedom fighters, their fears and their hopes and desires, and those feelings are beautifully illustrated here. Never once during the duration of the film does it remotely approach the gleeful romanticism that dominated the wild antics of a film like The Great Escape, which is about a similar (not identical) group of soldiers fighting a hidden, small scale war. Rather, there is a sharp and dark cynicism that permeates from the screen and from the get go, the resistance's cause seems hopeless, an uphill battle that will never be won outright, a war where even the smallest achievements are celebrated as major breakthrough. The subject matter is undeniably heroic yet is never hokey. It never dips into the Hollywood pantheon of glorious, rousing war films but like Melville does with his smaller in scale noirs, there is an obvious influence albeit one that has been warped and twisted to fit the directors vision.

The film, which so brilliantly keeps its narrative at a small, personal level, despite its far reaching epic story begins in gripping fashion with a static shot of Nazi troops goose stepping down the Champs-Elysees, in front of the Arc de Triomphe. They start far in the background but take a sudden right turn and begin marching directly at the camera. As they get closer and closer, the camera's unflinching eye remains steady, documenting the ever growing line of German soldiers inhabiting the streets until finally, with a devastatingly effective freeze frame, the motion stops, mid step as the first solider marches over our view, crushing the view, placing the audience in a submissive, subordinate role, one not entirely dissimilar to our soon to be introduced protagonist, Phillippe Gerbier. Brilliantly portrayed by Ventura, Gerbier is a richly developed character full of moral ambiguity. As a primary figure in the Resistance, Gerbier recognizes the difficulty of their position, of the moral boundaries that they regularly have to break in order to mount a successful campaign against their German occupiers and Ventura expertly walks the line that Gerbier faces, most notably in an initial execution scene in a small cottage on the French Coast. In it, never once does Ventura allow the scene to be anything else than a pained, gripping and deeply affecting sequence during which a traitor is brutally gagged and strangled. The scene is horrific in its realism and serves as a perfect representation of the larger film. Its difficult to watch but impossible to look away from.

Melville's true achievement here is how effortlessly he carries over the exciting tension of his noirs into this setting, keeping the tension intact but rather than having a more lighthearted feeling to it, he imbues it with a continuous sense of dread and foreboding. Unlike, say Hitchcock's tension, which almost seems significantly more playful, a piece of cinematic trickery if you will, Melville is deadly serious and never has the gleeful edge of the seat suspense of a Rear Window or North by Northwest. This is not to decry Hitchcock's form of suspense (there has never been any better) but merely to praise Melville's willingness to stick so closely to his subject matter, his devotion astounding. As an example of the effective nature of quiet builds of suspense, there are few equals to Army of Shadows. Much of the tension comes from his brilliant mise-en-scene, each shot lovingly composed and colored for maximum impact. Combined with the deft editing by Francoise Bonnot, the film is a visual stunner despite its dark settings. One needs to look no further than when Gerbier is hiding in a dark, abandoned farm house with only a small kerosene lamp to light the dank rooms. Even with the minimal lighting, the shots are perfect. The same can be said for the film's new 35mm print, which has been through a lovely restoration process resulting in a crisp, clean picture.

It is shocking that this film had not seen release in America until so recently but its unanimous praise has shown that any length of time would have been too long. As it stands now, Army of Shadows is an unrivaled wartime thriller, a genuine masterpiece and a surefire contender for one of the best films of all time. It is honestly and truthfully, that good. If this doesn't cement Melville's status as a top 5 French director, nothing will as he rightfully deserves a place in the pantheon of Truffaut, Godard and Renoir. There should never again be a conversation regarding the major achievements of French cinema without mention of Army of Shadows. It must be noted that for a film that is nearly 40 years old, its timely nature is truly amazing and along with The Battle of Algiers represents one of the finest examples of art that document and explore the dangers of resistance. Much like The Battle of Algiers, this should be required viewing for Americans as it provides an alternate, different way of thinking in regards to the continuing war in Iraq. This film's quality is undeniable and god willing will be able to claim its rightful place in the ranks of the all time greats.

*****