It got better with a second viewing

Rating: 9/10 (13 September 2006)

I saw this film a few years back--before I really appreciated French cinema. I liked the film but didn't think all that much about it and probably would have given the film a score of 6 or 7 had IMDb been available. However, after having seen a huge number of older French films that are available here in the States, I have really come to appreciate the films more and more--especially since they offer a slightly different style from the typical fare from Hollywood at the time. Neither is necessarily better--just different. And after having watched a ton of films, I really appreciate the difference. Now, I couldn't imagine scoring the film with anything lower than a 9, as it was truly an exceptionally made film with tremendous acting, writing and direction.
In many ways, this film is like a pacifist version of Stalag 17 without the comedy. Like J'ACCUSE, it is a decidedly anti-war French film that probably did a lot to convince the French that war wasn't glorious and was in fact often pointless. In hindsight, this was a great message but was delivered at the absolute worst time. The view of this film that the Germans and French weren't so different in WWI and they really had no reason to kill each other is very true--it was a stupid and wasteful war. But, given the evilness of the Nazis, who were poised to take over Europe, the message left the French ill-prepared to fight a war that needed to be fought and fought to win. Talk about bad timing! However, despite the timing, this was a marvelous film as instead of the usual jingoistic view of war, the characters were like real men and the Germans weren't mindless monsters. This full and realistic view of the war was echoed in other exceptional films such as ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT, THE EAGLE AND THE HAWK and ACE OF ACES. And, the ending of the film really summed up the war and the futility of meaningless death and carnage.
Beautiful, interesting and thoughtful--a terrific war film that is timeless despite its age. Watch it twice, if need be, and you'll no doubt be impressed.