#001: Grand Illusion

Criterion Collection #: 1
Year: 1937
Director: Jean Renoir
Running Time: 114 minutes
DVD Release Date: November 23, 1999

Overview

The original French title, La Grande Illusion, should be more properly translated as The Great Illusion. I point this out not only to show off my great understanding of the French language, but also because it makes a difference.

This movie can be broken down into three parts: First Prison, Second Prison, and On The Lam. The first part is sort of a cross between Hogan’s Heroes and The Great Escape, with a smattering of Stalag 17 thrown in for good measure. We have World War I aviators Lt. Maréchal (played by Jean Gabin) and Captain de Boeldieu (Pierre Fresnay), French officers shot down by German pilot Captain von Rauffenstein (Erich von Stroheim). Boeldieu and Rauffenstein both come from the upper class, and an instant bond is formed between the two of them that is not shared by Maréchal, who is simply a mechanic. After handshakes and well wishes all around from the captors and the captees, it’s off to the prison camp.

Sure, they’re prisoners of war, but what good fun and food there is to be had! Lt. Rosenthal (Marcel Dalio) gets packages of succulent food sent from his rich wife which he shares with all the officers, and they all get to rehearse and perform a musical revue, complete with costumes. It was a Grand Time. Or maybe a Great Time. One or the other.

While eating and dancing, however, they are all also busy digging an escape tunnel, much in the manner of the tunnel dug in The Great Escape . On the eve of their planned secret exodus, however, it is announced that all officers will be moved to a new prison camp. Oh well, back to the drawing board.

The second prison camp is really a German castle built on a craggy cliff top. Our heroes discover that the commandant is none other than Captain von Rauffenstein. The dear captain is no longer in active combat and appears a bit worse for wear. He later explains that he suffered a broken neck and knees and head, and thus is forced to become a glorified baby sitter and wear a funny neck-brace thing. This camp is for officers that have attempted several escapes in the past and is supposed to be escape proof. The prisoners' quarters are constantly searched, yet Captain Boeldieu, being of the upper class, is spared this rude intrusion by simply giving Rauffenstein his word as a gentleman that he has nothing illegal in his possession. Can you imagine such a thing happening today?

George W. Bush: C’mon, Saddam… do you have any Weapons of Mass Destruction?
Saddam: No, George, I don’t. On my word as a gentleman.
George: Well, okay then. How's the wife?

I just don’t see it happening, but I guess it was a simpler time back in 1914.

Rosenthal joins Maréchal and Boeldieu in a plan to escape from the castle. It involves, for some reason, all the prisoners playing flutes and Boeldieu sacrificing himself so Rosenthal and Maréchal can escape. Which they do. Boeldieu, however, is fatally shot by Rauffenstein, the latter literally begging the former not to make him shoot, especially in order for two commoners to escape. The inevitable happens, however, and Boeldieu dies as a result of the gunshot. We get a deathbed scene where Rauffenstein begs forgiveness for being such a poor shot (hitting him in the stomach instead of the legs), but Boeldieu will have nothing of that, reminding Rauffenstein that he was after all over 500 feet away and running. All things considered, not a bad shot, then. Congratulations. Boeldieu reminds him that for their class it’s great to get to die in battle, and Rauffenstein laments the fact that he lost his chance at such a glorious death. Or was it a great death? One or the other.

Meanwhile, Maréchal and Rosenthal make their escape and trek across the winter landscape with only a few lumps of sugar between them to last the several mile journey to Switzerland and freedom. Starving and hurt, they seek refuge in a barn, only to be discovered by a German woman named Elsa (Dita Parlo) who takes them into her house and nurses them back to health. We learn that her husband and several brothers have all been killed in the war, leaving her all alone with her little daughter. Rosenthal luckily speaks German so everyone can understand each other and, of course, fall in love. Maréchal and Elsa, that is. Still, eventually the two men must continue onward, and they just make it across the border to Switzerland as a German patrol fires a few cursory shots in their direction.

They’ve done it; they’ve escaped and survived the war. The Upper Class Boys’ Club that was greater (grander?) than divisions created by mere geopolitical boundaries, however, would not be so fortunate. War would no longer be so “civilized”. And that’s probably a good thing.

Video & Audio

For a movie that’s over seventy years old, the picture looks wonderful. This is especially surprising given the fact that this film was confiscated by the Germans after the outbreak of WWII, and the negative thought to be lost. There’s an interesting story in the “Press Book” section of the extras that goes into how this film had been restored from various sources over the years and then finally completely restored from the recently discovered original negative by the Fine Folks at Criterion. The before and after video clips in the extras illustrate the good job they did. The audio is the original French ( mainly) mono and does the job.

Extras

Extras include an audio essay by Peter Cowie, a restoration demo, audio of Renoir accepting the award for best foreign language movie at the 1938 New York Film Critics Awards, several text pages (called a “Press Book”) on the film’s title, cast bios, lost negative, an essay on Renoir by von Stroheim, and a filmed introduction by Renoir himself that was shown during the re-release of this movie in the 1950s. The Renoir intro is interesting and informative, and he speaks in English to boot.

Oh, and you get the color bars, too, so you can spend thirty minutes adjusting your TV set to display colors properly and then promptly watch this film in glorious black and white.

Parting Thoughts

Jean Renoir would explore the differences and battles between the social classes more fully in his 1939 movie, La Règle du jeu (The Rules Of The Game), but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

Keath’s Thoughts

Grand Illusion is the movie equivalent of Stephen Crane’s “Red Badge of Courage.” Due to its historical literary importance, everyone read “Red Badge of Courage” in school. Due to its dated style and slower pace, everyone was bored to tears. Nevertheless everyone was forced to take part simply because you weren’t considered properly educated in classic literature if you hadn’t made it through.

Here’s my opinion: if you’re interested in educating yourself in the art of film, in being able to follow the evolution of film, in deciphering themes and cinematic techniques, in being one of those people who’s seen 90% of the titles on those “100 Best Movies Ever!” lists, then you should watch this movie. After all, Grand Illusion is the first Criterion Collection for a reason (well probably for multiple reasons, including the ability to get distribution rights) – it’s one of the most important movies ever made.

If, however, you are one of those who want a snappy plot, action scenes, twist endings, and other more modern techniques, you can safely skip this one. After all, this may be a “Red Badge of Courage” but there are plenty other enjoyable classics (I think Alfred Hitchcock might well qualify as Mark Twain in this analogy) still to come which you will enjoy much more while still getting your necessary film appreciation.

Cindy’s Thoughts

Jean Renoir was the son of legendary Impressionist painter Auguste, and this movie certainly demonstrates that Jean inherited his father’s artistic eye. As a testament to its greatness, Grand Illusion was the first foreign language film to be nominated for Best Picture by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. As Hank mentioned previously, the negative of the film was seized by Germans in World War II after Nazi Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels declared the movie to be Cinematic Public Enemy No. 1 due to its underlying themes.

My one complaint about this movie (and many foreign language films suffer from this syndrome) is that songs that rhyme in French miraculously rhyme in English as well. I would expect that the inclusion of such diversions in a film is to lend some meaning to a movie’s message, and a forced rhyme causes something to be lost in translation.

Grand Illusion is a good movie, a Great Movie even. If you are so inclined to watch all the movies on the Greatest Movies Ever list, then of course this film is highly recommended, but that probably goes without saying. For the rest of us plebeians, it’s still hard for me to say to skip it, so given the modern day world of short attention spans, be prepared to schedule a viewing in more than one sitting (or start the movie so that it ends before 10 pm so you don’t fall asleep).