Name: Légions d'honneur
Genre: Drama
Released: 1938-02-17
Duration: 1 h 36 min
Rating: 6.6
Cast: Marie Bell, Abel Jacquin, Pierre Renoir

Charles Vanel was the patriarch of the French cinema.Only American Lilian Gish can compete with him for longevity.His career began around 1910 and ended in the eighties.Abroad,he is known for his parts in Clouzot's classics "wages of fear" and "diaboliques" .

Like in Litvak's "l'équipage" Vanel portrays a man whose wife has found a younger love.But it's not as successful.The construction of the movie is bizarre:there are three parts which do not hang well together.

Part one is a trial(a court martial) where an officer is tried for self-inflicted injury.When he is asked to swear on his "legion d'honneur" (the highest French decoration,hence the title) he is telling the truth,he breaks down.He's thrown out of the Foreign legion.

Part two is a rather tedious flashback and its connection with the two other parts is very thin.The ex-officer has sent a manuscript to a notary who begins to read it and we can follow his adventures with a fellow man (Vanel) in the desert where they fight against the rebels.Nothing here to match "Beau Geste" or Duvivier's "la Bandeira".

Part three shows the two men back in France in Camargue .There lives Vanel's wife ...And guess what will happen next?The most amazing thing is that this female character (played by Marie Bell) only appears in this final part ,after sixty-five (!) minutes whereas she heads the bill.

A movie which will seem obsolete by today's standards .

French-language cinema, whether in France, Québec, or other Francophone regions, explores cultural identity, social change, and the tension between the individual and society. French cinema is not only celebrated for its intellectual experimentation and auteur traditions, but also its success in mainstream comedy, romance, and commercial entertainment. In Québec, films often focus on questions of language, belonging, and community within a distinct cultural landscape.

Jean-Pierre Léaud in The 400 Blows (1959)

The drama genre is a broad category that features stories portraying human experiences, emotions, conflicts, and relationships in a realistic and emotionally impactful way. Dramas delve into the complexities of human life, often exploring themes of love, loss, morality, societal issues, personal growth, with the aim to evoke an emotional response from the audience by presenting relatable and thought-provoking stories.

Mahershala Ali and Alex R. Hibbert in Moonlight (2016)

An officer is tried for self-inflicted injury.He is thrown out of the Foreign Legion .

The Biggest Movies and TV Coming in September

See which big screen releases you can watch from the comfort of your couch.

Theatrical Releases Coming to Streaming

Get a closer look at these actors from their many TV and streaming series roles.

Streaming Stars, Then and Now

Marie Bell and Pierre Renoir in Légions d'honneur (1938)

Légions d'honneur

Photos1

Top Cast15

User reviews1

Related interests

Storyline

Did you know

Top picks

Details

Tech specs

Contribute to this page

More to explore

Recently viewed