The film tells the story of mathilde audrey tautou, a young french woman engaged to a bright and gentle young man named manech gaspard ulliel. Nov 26, 2004 a very long engagement is rated r under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian. A very long engagement is a story that takes place during and after world war 1 it starts out with with four men being marched through high water in the trenches during combat, the men sentenced to death for self mutilation some by accident. A very long engagement from the director of amelie jeanpierre jeunet, a very long engagement is a french antiwar film with english subtitles that crosses the genres of war, romance and mystery. In this handsome and very moving tale of courage and romance in wartime from the team that made amelie, a young french womans greatest battle is about to begin as the first world war is coming to an end. French director jeanpierre jeunet reunites with his amelie star audrey tautou in a very long engagement, and it may be the best film hes ever made. She refuses to accept his death, and begins an exhaustive personal odyssey to. While on the front, cinematographer bruno delbonnel gives us a hard, dirty look at the trench warfare of wwi.
Mathilde lives in a small french village with her aunt ba cna cdicte. The saga surrounding the nationality of jeanpierre jeunets wartime drama a very long engagement has ended in divorce, with frances highest court ruling that the film is a. Jeunet and tatous articles and filmographies will be because of the film. In classification terms alone, the film is hedging its bets as a. A very long engagement audrey tautous wwi fairy tale. Is hard to point out the film in a specific category, jeanpierre jeunet brought the complete box of toys for this epic adventure. A love that wont surrender to war, death and oblivion the. Two years earlier, her fiance manech left for the front at the somme.
It spotlights the absurdity of war along with its brutality, and underscores the indomitability of the human spirit with a love conquers all story line of uncommon poignance. A very long engagement 2004 directed by jeanpierre. Tells the story of a young womans relentless search for her fiance, who has disappeared from the trenches of the somme during world war one. It was based on the 1991 novel of the same name by sebastien japrisot. A very long engagement has quite a few drastically different settings. A very long engagement internet movie firearms database.
The administrative court film found the problem was the film s partial backing by us studio warner bros. A compelling film, wonderfully created, showing french cinema at its very best. The voice over narrator florence thomassin, who we will come to know well, tells us about the men we are seeing. He is one of five french soldiers believed to have. With a very long engagement, however, his strokes are far stronger and cut deeper. Perhaps only the french, though, who suffered so grievously as a nation in the great war, could get away with a very long engagement, a labor of love for amelie director jeanpierre jeunet, based upon sebastien japrisots novel. In this aspect of the novel too, japrisot uses his skills as a mystery writer. Jeanpierre jeunet manech loves mathilde, mathilde loves manech.
It must be the only movie to combine amazing combat scenes with romance. Jeanpierre jeunet, 2004, set in world war 1 and its aftermath, is an improbable mixture of sweetness and shadow an unabashedly romantic chick film with palpable commercial ambitions that nevertheless more successfully conveys workingclass sentiments against war than more cooly artistic films like paths of glory dir. You know, as much as they call it very long, this engagement doesnt really seem long enough, or at least it doesnt at times, as the film will spend more than a few occasions glossing over. Finally, the very long engagement script is here for all you quotes spouting fans of the movie by jeanpierre jeunet and starring audrey tautou. Five desperate french soldiers during the battle of the somme shoot. A very long engagement, it so happens, was paid for by warner brothers, leading some critics to question its french credentials. He started directing tv commercials and video clips such as julien clerc in 1984. At two and a quarter hours, it is the longest film yet by french director jeanpierre jeunet. A love that wont surrender to war, death and oblivion.
Apr, 2016 a very long engagement 2004 i am working my way through movies that could potentially make the field for my best wwi combat movie tournament. Mathilde tautou, a beautiful french girl crippled by polio at an early age, has adored soulmate manech ulliel for as long as she can remember. By the time hes called to fight in the horrific first war, they are engaged. The film stars audrey tautou as mathilde donnay, a young woman whose desperate search for her fiancee leads to her subsequent discovery that he is one of five soldiers that have been convicted of selfmutilation in order to escape military. A very long engagement opens by introducing us to five french soldiers convicted of wounding themselves. The comicdramatic divide of a very long engagement is difficult to. Like millions of others he was killed on the field of battle. Four years later, tautou reteams with jeunet for his epic world war one love story, a very long engagement. A very long engagement 5 mins, 15 directed by jeanpierre jeunet. A very long engagement presents world war i as it was for the soldier at the front. And thats what adds so much veracity to jeunets storytelling. A very long engagement 2004 i am working my way through movies that could potentially make the field for my best wwi combat movie tournament. Bbc news entertainment film ruled not french enough. Clearly the film is a much harder sell than amelie.
A very long engagement letterboxd social film discovery. This script is a transcript that was painstakingly transcribed using the screenplay andor viewings of very long engagement. It was suggested that i consider the french film a very long engagement. Frances national center for cinematography cnc makes state funds available for film projects it has approved. A very long engagement is a 1991 romantic war novel by french author and screenwriter sebastien japrisot. A very long engagement is a book about a girl named mathilde who is trying to find out what happened to her fiance manech. This will keep the edit histories for the film tied to the page for it. A very long engagement starts right out in the ugly, muddy trenches on the french front during wwi. Yes, a very long engagement is a tragic film, but it still depicts life. A very long engagement 1010 movie clip she looks at him. Other articles where a very long engagement is discussed. A very long engagement film by jeunet 2004 britannica. But a court judged it was too american to compete in french film festivals.
A very long engagement is all that its title promises. Mathilde finds out that her fiance has been courtmartialed and has been pushed out of the. A love that wont surrender to war, death and oblivion the new. A very long engagement takes us back and forth from manech and the others mired in battle and mathilde mired in what may be a fruitless and futile search for answers that simply do not exist. Mathilde audrey tautou was engaged to her childhood sweetheart manech gaspard ulliel when he was enlisted to fight in the great war. The complement of jeunets visual style with tautous quirky acting will pretty much always give an enchanting product, but in a very long engagement, the story itself is much too clunky and aloof to stay focused on. A very long engagement 810 movie clip the battlefield. In french with english subtitles the film is set in france near the end of world war i in the deadly trenches of the somme, in the gilded parisien halls of power, and in the modest home of an indomitable provincial girl. The two most memorable recent films on the 191418 conflict are stanley kubricks paths of glory, about the callous execution of french soldiers. A very long engagement 2004 jeanpierre jeunet and audrey tautou in a very long. The cnc approved jeunets latest film in october 2003. A very long engagement is a great war film that delves deep into the human cost of armed conflict.
It tells the story of this young womans relentless, moving and sometimes comic search for her fiance, who has disappeared. Jeanpierre jeunet 1953 jeanpierre jeunet is a selftaught director. A very long engagement and chorists nominated at the golden globes. When mathilde hears manech has been killed in the trenches, her inner steel comes out. A large dog is accompanied by french actress audrey tautou and french actor dominique pinon in a very long engagement. Nov 04, 2004 when it comes out in the us later this month a very long engagement is to be distributed as if it were an american film despite the subtitles. It seems that some of the american rewiews have not understood this productions depth and style. It is a stunning achievement, brilliantly shot, designed, and executed on a grand scale. Londons favourite french film 2006 united kingdom won. A very long engagement is a gorgeous cinematic experience, and i highly recommend it. Its written in black and white on the official notice.
With audrey tautou, gaspard ulliel, jodie foster, dominique pinon. The film would have been a confusing disaster if the structure was not so keenly realized in the script. A very long engagement was nominated for two oscars best cinematography bruno delbonnels camera captures jeunets love for atmospheric lighting which helps to express emotion and audacious camera moves and angles and best art direction aline bonettos production design captures the. It is a fictional tale about a young womans desperate search for her fiance who might have been killed during world war i. The brutality of battle is contrasted with the back stories of the five men. Then create a new page for a very long engagement novel and add new info about the book there. When it comes out in the us later this month a very long engagement is to be distributed as if it were an american film despite the subtitles. Jeanpierre jeunets most sophisticated achievement to date, if not actually his best film, a very long engagement marks the first instance of the directors trademark techniques applied to a story of historical consequence. Another woman will not answer mathildes questions until she has killed all the french officers who had a part in murdering her lover. One of frances biggest stars audrey tautou also takes a leading role in the film. A very long engagement is epic, is amelie love story set in david finchers zodiac, or like i read before amelie goes to war.
The film is a sweeping cinematic odyssey of young lovers separated by the savagery of war. The film features graphic war violence of bodies being blown to bits. A very long engagement beautiful french movie youtube. Editing is also a major factor, but i would guess that the script had everything laid out. Manech tried to get excused from duty by getting his hand shot, but he was. A very long engagement certainly attempts to capitalize on this success. Jan 22, 2005 a very long engagement 5 mins, 15 directed by jeanpierre jeunet. Jeunet argued a very long engagement was filmed in france and used french actors and technicians. A lot of french films at least the wellknown ones are known for being downbeat andor having depressing endings. Jul 26, 2005 a very long engagement is all that its title promises. While that film and the taxi series cemented cotillards star status in her own country, she became known to american audiences with her turn in american director tim burtons big fish 2003, in which she had a small but memorable role. Scenes from the beautiful french film a very long engagement music is also taken from the movie, musical score by angelo badalamenti.