The Dignity of War!

Rating: 10/10 (10 September 2009)

To a post World War II viewer, the idea of a prison camp like this one seems a little hard to fathom. The French are at War with the Germans in World War I, and a group of officers have been arrested. They spend their waking hours trying escape; it is their duty. Enter Erich Von Stroheim. He plays a German officer with many broken parts. A neck brace keeps him from turning his head. He must pivot at the waist. This gives him an odd stiff appearance. He comes from an aristocratic background and enjoys the company of officers, even enemy officers. This is an amazing contrast between the realities and pain of war and an ancient code that made war seem almost dignified. At one point the French officers are handed their own manuals and expected to conduct themselves according to a written set of principles.
One officer gives his life so that others may escape. The men are taken in by a farm widow. This expresses the incredible sadness of war and the uncertainty of the future. At no time does Renoir get overly dramatic. He plays things out subtly and with grace. Even with that, you leave the film knowing that war is the worst thing we can foist on each other.