Like the paintings that are the real subject of this film, here we have immortal art from John Frankenheimer.
And make no mistake - this is a film with a central idea - that culture is not just in the eyes of the beholder, but is a national treasure, shared by all, and what gives the people their actual value, beyond their living and dying.
The fanatical, theiving Colonel von Waldheim, believes that he, representing the German Master Race, is entitled to these treasures of France, a defeated and inferior nation of Untermenschen, who have forfeited them on the battlefield. He is determined to have them, knowing that the loss of the war is a mere detail in the great Kulturkampf. His great crime originates in his very appreciation of the humanism and artistry and creativity that his side is doing all it can to eradicate. And his enemy, Labiche, is a simple, uneducated and uncultured man, whose salvation is his faith in his own people, and his open heart. This central, ironic idea motivates the entire film. And here is the greatest irony - here is an action film, as thrilling and as well staged as any, which is not about the action. The idea could have been played out on an off-Broadway stage with wooden toys, and the story would have been just as compelling.
The film-making technique is simply some of the most brilliant ever to be undertaken. There are countless shots which leave the viewer gaping in amazement. The editing is such that a nearly unbearable tension is developed. Night and day shots intertwine in an hypnotic wash that seems to extend the timeline to weeks, although in fact only 2 days are passed. In all the film I did not see one single intrusion of the world of 1964 on that of 1944 France. I was on that train. I knew what the stakes were.
There is no point in racking up more points for Frankenheimer here. This is an effort worthy of Kubrick and Kurosawa. There cannot possibly be a better example of the film maker's art. And we have not even touched on the acting, which is itself a miracle in all its particulars. Not a single performance deserves anything but the highest praise.
It is good to have films such as this. We can always return to them when we need to remember what film is really all about - an art form as great as literature, and yes, as great as those boxes of paintings by the side of the road.
And make no mistake - this is a film with a central idea - that culture is not just in the eyes of the beholder, but is a national treasure, shared by all, and what gives the people their actual value, beyond their living and dying.
The fanatical, theiving Colonel von Waldheim, believes that he, representing the German Master Race, is entitled to these treasures of France, a defeated and inferior nation of Untermenschen, who have forfeited them on the battlefield. He is determined to have them, knowing that the loss of the war is a mere detail in the great Kulturkampf. His great crime originates in his very appreciation of the humanism and artistry and creativity that his side is doing all it can to eradicate. And his enemy, Labiche, is a simple, uneducated and uncultured man, whose salvation is his faith in his own people, and his open heart. This central, ironic idea motivates the entire film. And here is the greatest irony - here is an action film, as thrilling and as well staged as any, which is not about the action. The idea could have been played out on an off-Broadway stage with wooden toys, and the story would have been just as compelling.
The film-making technique is simply some of the most brilliant ever to be undertaken. There are countless shots which leave the viewer gaping in amazement. The editing is such that a nearly unbearable tension is developed. Night and day shots intertwine in an hypnotic wash that seems to extend the timeline to weeks, although in fact only 2 days are passed. In all the film I did not see one single intrusion of the world of 1964 on that of 1944 France. I was on that train. I knew what the stakes were.
There is no point in racking up more points for Frankenheimer here. This is an effort worthy of Kubrick and Kurosawa. There cannot possibly be a better example of the film maker's art. And we have not even touched on the acting, which is itself a miracle in all its particulars. Not a single performance deserves anything but the highest praise.
It is good to have films such as this. We can always return to them when we need to remember what film is really all about - an art form as great as literature, and yes, as great as those boxes of paintings by the side of the road.