Le silence de la mer
Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville
Written by Jean-Pierre Melville from a story by Vercors
1949/France
Melville Productions
First viewing/Hulu Plus
[box] It is beautiful for a soldier to disobey orders which are criminal – Anatole France (from a clipping left for the officer)[/box]
After seeing many gorgeous stills from this film, I was convinced I would love it. The visuals delivered but, unfortunately, I found the story pretty tedious.
The story takes place during the German Occupation. An old man and his niece are ordered to share their house with a German Officer. They decide to treat the man as if he were not there. They neither speak to him nor respond in any way. The officer happens to be a sensitive would-be composer and a Francophile. He joins the two each night and tells them about his dream for a truly free France that will be restored to its former greatness when Germany wins the war.
Then one day the officer must travel to Paris. He is excited about the possiblity of sharing his ideas with his friends. He comes back completely disillusioned and soon volunteers to go to the front lines. With Howard Vernon, Nicole Stephane, and Jean-Marie Robaine.
The film was based on a novel that was clandestinely released in 1942 and which became the Bible of the French Resistance. Melville did not have the author’s permission to film and finally agreed that he would burn the negatives if the author was unhappy with the film. The author was satisfied so I guess we can assume that the film is faithful to the book.
The visuals are amazing – all the more so since this was made with almost no budget. The music track cost more to make than the entire film. Otherwise, the film is almost entirely one long monologue by the officer accompanied by occasional narration from the old man. Time passed really slowly for me. Melville would do much better later.
Clip – Wordless views of Occupied Paris
