Peter Lyderik
2nd July 2006, 22:14
Does any of you know of other films/war films about the French Indochina War, 1945-1954? Indochine and Lost Command I know of, but doesn't count in my opinion.
Jump into Hell
1955-USA-War Drama
Jump into Hell is one of the first films to deal with the ongoing conflict in Vietnam or, as it was still known in 1955, French IndoChina. The 56-day battle of Dien Ben Phu is herein reenacted, with several French volunteers emerging as the heroes. Arriving in IndoChina by parachute, Captain Guy Bertrand (Jacques Sernas, here billed as "Jack") and his comrades make a courageous stand against the Communist forces. Before their inevitable doom, the men conjure up visions of the mademoiselles they left behind. Jump into Hell was scripted by novelist Irving Wallace, whose attitudes towards Western intervention in Vietnam would undergo a radical change within the next 15 years. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Patrouille De Choc
1956 France
En Indochine, le lieutenant Perrin et ses hommes tiennent un poste isole. Un commando d'indigenes est instruit pour les suppleer mais il sera decime par les viets, qui lancent ensuite leur attaque contre le poste de Perrin.
Fort Du Fou
a k a Fort of the Mad
1963-France/Italy
Set during the war for independence in French Indochina, this turgid drama by director Leo Joannon centers around a group of Catholic Vietnamese who are inside a fortress under siege by the communist factions in the independence movement (this is before the U.S.-Vietnam War.) A French captain is supposed to bring the Catholics to a safe haven, yet it does not seem viable to leave the fort. Loudspeakers blare out propaganda messages to those trapped inside, and while the contingent tries to keep it together, circumstances begin to work in their favor. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
In the last days of the French-Indochina war, a column of troops under the orders of Captain Noyelles protect the Catholic refugees, wait for reinforcements and hold up at Fort Du Fou (" Madman''s Fort "). The " Viets " surround them and use a PA system to break the morale of the soldiers and refugees. Noyelles finds out his wife has died and sacrifices his life to save the garnison.
Le Facteur S'En Va-T-En Guerre
1965 France
In this French drama, a Parisian postman decides to deliver mail in the army and finds himself fighting involved in the Indochina conflict. There he becomes disillusioned with the constant battles. Then he is captured by the Communists, and when at last he is liberated, he and the Cambodian woman he has fallen in love with return to Paris. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
La 317e Section
1965 France
Set near the end of the bloody Indo-Chinese War in which the Vietnamese struggled to shuck off the yoke of French colonialism, this taut, provocative French war drama chronicles the events leading up to the slaughter of the French Army's 317th Platoon, a unit comprised of 41 Laotians and a quartet of French officers that was ordered to make it back to the safety of camp Dien Bien Phu. It is an arduous journey and the soldiers must not only battle constant ambushes, but also the jungle itself. Many soldiers die along the way. When they finally make it to the camp, they find the enemy waiting. Not one member of the platoon survives the ensuing slaughter. — Sandra Brennan
Story about a French/Laotian platoon during May 1954 (two months before the armistice) as they withdraw through the jungle after the fall of Dien Bien Phu. They are slowly annihilated by ambushes and disease. The film captures the inarticulate anguish and solitude of each man by focusing on a veteran Alsatian sergeant (who fought in the German army in World War II) and a young French officer fresh from military school. Their impersonal, hierarchical and sometimes hostile relationship develops into an unlikely friendship.
Le Crabe-Tambour
1977 France
Le Crabe Tambour (The Crab Drum) stars Jacques Perrin as the title character. An officer in the French navy, Perrin has earned his nickname through his habit of beating his chest a la King Kong after consuming a crab dinner. Stories of this eccentric but courageous warrior remain in circulation long after his involvement in the Indochinese and Algerian wars. Two of his former comrades in arms, Jean Rochefort and Claude Rich, have long suffered guilt pangs for not having stood by "Le Crabe Tambour" when he needed them most. Accompanied by a third veteran, Jacques Dufilho, the men decide to stage a reunion with the dying Perrin. This triangular character study (the title character is seen only in flashback) won several French film industry awards when it was originally released in 1977; still, it didn't pick up a US distributor until 1984. Director Pierre Schoendoerffer co-adapted the screenplay for Le Crabe Tambour from his own novel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Based on the career of French naval officer Pierre Guillaume and told through the recollections of his fellow officers, Le Crabe Tambour covers some 20 years of French history as Guillaume patrolled the Mekong River in Vietnam by boat in the 50's, then, taken prisoner, spent three years in a Vietnamese jail, and finally participated in the unsuccessful 1961 rebellion of French army generals against Charles de Gaulle. Shot by Raoul Coutard, the film often recalls Joseph Conrad, and is one of the grandest, most beautiful adventure movies in years...sucessfully maintains its epic sweep from start to finish (N.Y. Times). Directed by Pierre Schoendoerffer. Featuring Jean Rochefort, Jacques Perrin, Claude Rich and Jacques Dufilho.
Charlie Bravo
1980 France
After a nurse is captured in Vietnam, a group of soldiers attempt a rescue in this dubbed actioner. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
War film set in French Indochina in 1954. Based on the director's experience as a photo-journalist covering the French Army in Vietnam. A 13-man commando unit parachutes into northern Vietnam to rescue a Red Cross nurse being held by the Viet Minh. The commandos massacre a village and Viet Minh prisoners in the process. They then begin a fighting withdrawal to the coast where they are finally caught and wiped out by the Viet Minh.
Dîen Bîen Phu
1992 France
Long before America was mired in an unwinnable conflict in Vietnam, the French had spent decades in an attempt to hold onto their Indochinese colonies, which included Vietnam. By the early 1950s, several generations of dedicated, independence-minded Vietnamese had fought the French to a standstill. This long conflict culminated in a battle along the Laotian border near the town of Dien Bien Phu in March, 1954, which the French narrowly lost. That loss led to a negotiated settlement and the partition of Vietnam. Broken promises and French stubbornness resulted in continued conflict in South Vietnam and the eventual involvement of the Americans. In this film, the wider human face of that 1954 conflict is seen through the eyes of an American reporter, played by Donald Pleasence, as he travels through Vietnam researching the story. In particular, it follows the fate of one group of soldiers, members of the French Foreign Legion, whom the reporter meets at a bar in Hanoi. It is a remarkable testament to political changes in the world that this French movie was filmed in Vietnam with the cooperation of the Vietnamese government. — Clarke Fountain
The Quiet American
2002 USA
Jump into Hell
1955-USA-War Drama
Jump into Hell is one of the first films to deal with the ongoing conflict in Vietnam or, as it was still known in 1955, French IndoChina. The 56-day battle of Dien Ben Phu is herein reenacted, with several French volunteers emerging as the heroes. Arriving in IndoChina by parachute, Captain Guy Bertrand (Jacques Sernas, here billed as "Jack") and his comrades make a courageous stand against the Communist forces. Before their inevitable doom, the men conjure up visions of the mademoiselles they left behind. Jump into Hell was scripted by novelist Irving Wallace, whose attitudes towards Western intervention in Vietnam would undergo a radical change within the next 15 years. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Patrouille De Choc
1956 France
En Indochine, le lieutenant Perrin et ses hommes tiennent un poste isole. Un commando d'indigenes est instruit pour les suppleer mais il sera decime par les viets, qui lancent ensuite leur attaque contre le poste de Perrin.
Fort Du Fou
a k a Fort of the Mad
1963-France/Italy
Set during the war for independence in French Indochina, this turgid drama by director Leo Joannon centers around a group of Catholic Vietnamese who are inside a fortress under siege by the communist factions in the independence movement (this is before the U.S.-Vietnam War.) A French captain is supposed to bring the Catholics to a safe haven, yet it does not seem viable to leave the fort. Loudspeakers blare out propaganda messages to those trapped inside, and while the contingent tries to keep it together, circumstances begin to work in their favor. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
In the last days of the French-Indochina war, a column of troops under the orders of Captain Noyelles protect the Catholic refugees, wait for reinforcements and hold up at Fort Du Fou (" Madman''s Fort "). The " Viets " surround them and use a PA system to break the morale of the soldiers and refugees. Noyelles finds out his wife has died and sacrifices his life to save the garnison.
Le Facteur S'En Va-T-En Guerre
1965 France
In this French drama, a Parisian postman decides to deliver mail in the army and finds himself fighting involved in the Indochina conflict. There he becomes disillusioned with the constant battles. Then he is captured by the Communists, and when at last he is liberated, he and the Cambodian woman he has fallen in love with return to Paris. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
La 317e Section
1965 France
Set near the end of the bloody Indo-Chinese War in which the Vietnamese struggled to shuck off the yoke of French colonialism, this taut, provocative French war drama chronicles the events leading up to the slaughter of the French Army's 317th Platoon, a unit comprised of 41 Laotians and a quartet of French officers that was ordered to make it back to the safety of camp Dien Bien Phu. It is an arduous journey and the soldiers must not only battle constant ambushes, but also the jungle itself. Many soldiers die along the way. When they finally make it to the camp, they find the enemy waiting. Not one member of the platoon survives the ensuing slaughter. — Sandra Brennan
Story about a French/Laotian platoon during May 1954 (two months before the armistice) as they withdraw through the jungle after the fall of Dien Bien Phu. They are slowly annihilated by ambushes and disease. The film captures the inarticulate anguish and solitude of each man by focusing on a veteran Alsatian sergeant (who fought in the German army in World War II) and a young French officer fresh from military school. Their impersonal, hierarchical and sometimes hostile relationship develops into an unlikely friendship.
Le Crabe-Tambour
1977 France
Le Crabe Tambour (The Crab Drum) stars Jacques Perrin as the title character. An officer in the French navy, Perrin has earned his nickname through his habit of beating his chest a la King Kong after consuming a crab dinner. Stories of this eccentric but courageous warrior remain in circulation long after his involvement in the Indochinese and Algerian wars. Two of his former comrades in arms, Jean Rochefort and Claude Rich, have long suffered guilt pangs for not having stood by "Le Crabe Tambour" when he needed them most. Accompanied by a third veteran, Jacques Dufilho, the men decide to stage a reunion with the dying Perrin. This triangular character study (the title character is seen only in flashback) won several French film industry awards when it was originally released in 1977; still, it didn't pick up a US distributor until 1984. Director Pierre Schoendoerffer co-adapted the screenplay for Le Crabe Tambour from his own novel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Based on the career of French naval officer Pierre Guillaume and told through the recollections of his fellow officers, Le Crabe Tambour covers some 20 years of French history as Guillaume patrolled the Mekong River in Vietnam by boat in the 50's, then, taken prisoner, spent three years in a Vietnamese jail, and finally participated in the unsuccessful 1961 rebellion of French army generals against Charles de Gaulle. Shot by Raoul Coutard, the film often recalls Joseph Conrad, and is one of the grandest, most beautiful adventure movies in years...sucessfully maintains its epic sweep from start to finish (N.Y. Times). Directed by Pierre Schoendoerffer. Featuring Jean Rochefort, Jacques Perrin, Claude Rich and Jacques Dufilho.
Charlie Bravo
1980 France
After a nurse is captured in Vietnam, a group of soldiers attempt a rescue in this dubbed actioner. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
War film set in French Indochina in 1954. Based on the director's experience as a photo-journalist covering the French Army in Vietnam. A 13-man commando unit parachutes into northern Vietnam to rescue a Red Cross nurse being held by the Viet Minh. The commandos massacre a village and Viet Minh prisoners in the process. They then begin a fighting withdrawal to the coast where they are finally caught and wiped out by the Viet Minh.
Dîen Bîen Phu
1992 France
Long before America was mired in an unwinnable conflict in Vietnam, the French had spent decades in an attempt to hold onto their Indochinese colonies, which included Vietnam. By the early 1950s, several generations of dedicated, independence-minded Vietnamese had fought the French to a standstill. This long conflict culminated in a battle along the Laotian border near the town of Dien Bien Phu in March, 1954, which the French narrowly lost. That loss led to a negotiated settlement and the partition of Vietnam. Broken promises and French stubbornness resulted in continued conflict in South Vietnam and the eventual involvement of the Americans. In this film, the wider human face of that 1954 conflict is seen through the eyes of an American reporter, played by Donald Pleasence, as he travels through Vietnam researching the story. In particular, it follows the fate of one group of soldiers, members of the French Foreign Legion, whom the reporter meets at a bar in Hanoi. It is a remarkable testament to political changes in the world that this French movie was filmed in Vietnam with the cooperation of the Vietnamese government. — Clarke Fountain
The Quiet American
2002 USA