Part of Restoration Roundup
“Betrayal. Loyalty. Collaboration. Resistance”
In 1942, French engineer and Resistant cell leader Philippe Gerbier (Lino Ventura) is arrested and sent to a Nazi concentration camp. Managing to escape, we follow Gerbier and his Resistance allies through operations, camaraderie and espionage — and witness the constant threat of capture, danger and the tough decisions that need to be taken to stay alive.
Based on a novel by Joseph Kessel and featuring a stella cast that includes Lino Ventura (LES MISÉRABLES, ELEVATOR TO THE GALLOWS), Paul Meurisse (LES DIABOLIQUES), Jean-Pierre Cassel (THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGEOISIE) and Simone Signoret (ROOM AT THE TOP), ARMY OF SHADOWS is a real-life story channeled through the minimalism of Melville’s gangster films. The result is an unmissable tale of defiance in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.
Having himself participated in the French Resistance, ARMY OF SHADOWS is both Melville’s most personal film — and though initially underappreciated in France, is today widely recognized as being his finest.
Scanned in 4K from the original negative by Image Retrouvée, supervised by Studiocanal’s Sophie Boyer and Jean-Pierre Boiget. With the funding support of CNC.
“A rare work of art that thrills the senses and the mind…. Worthy of that overused superlative, masterpiece!” —Manohla Dargis, New York Times “Any moviegoers with a weakness for dry heroism, dark-toned humor, and storytelling of pantherish pace and grace — in short, lovers of cinema — should reach for their fedoras, turn up the collars of their coats, and sneak to this picture through a mist of rain…. You are in the hands of a master.” —Anthony Lane, New Yorker “Rarely has a film shown so truly that place in the heart where hope lives with fatalism…. This is not a war film. It is about a state of mind.” —Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times “A brilliant and relentless thriller, painted in Melville’s trademark shades of charcoal and midnight blue, marked by daring escapes, unimaginable moments of self-sacrifice and unconscionable acts of betrayal.” —Scott Foundas, L.A. Weekly
