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Army of Shadows

L'armée des ombres

Poster

DIRECTED BY:
Jean-Pierre Melville

STARRING:
LINO VENTURA
SIMONE SIGNORET
PAUL MEURISSE
JEAN-PIERRE CASSEL
CLAUDE MANN

HISTORICAL DRAMA / FRANCE, ITALY / 1969 / 143 MINS / M

FRENCH, GERMAN, ENGLISH

Rarely has a film shown so truly that place in the heart where hope lives with fatalism.

- ROGER EBERT

Restored in 4k and presented at Cannes Classics in 2024, see acclaimed director Jean-Pierre Melville's unglamorous and nuanced study of the French Resistance, eating itself from the inside.

Betrayed by a comrade, Philippe Gerbier (Lino Ventura), the head of a Resistance cell, is captured and sent to a Nazi torture camp. In Vichy-run Marseille, the young betraying agent, Paul Dounat (Alain Libolt) is ambushed by Gerbier’s comrades and sentenced to execution. Following the story of a small group of Resistance fighters, ARMY OF SHADOWS goes beyond a binary tale of good versus evil, offering a raw, poignant portrayal of the brave men and women who fought against fascism and the sacrifices they made along the way.

Based on Melville’s experience in the French Resistance and Joseph Kessel's novel, the film is deeply personal, combining his intense study of the human condition with the signature chiaroscuro and realism that established him as a celebrated auteur of French crime cinema. Controversial upon its 1969 French release and only premiering in the US in 2006, ARMY OF SHADOWS remains a masterpiece of atmospheric tension, ideal for cinéphiles. Don’t miss this exclusive screening of one of history’s greatest war films.

Classic Movie Night - CinéWine - Army of Shadows - Sunday 13 April

6:00 PM
Sun 13 Apr
Dendy Southport

The most personal film by the underworld poet Jean-Pierre Melville, who had participated in the French Resistance himself, this tragic masterpiece, based on a novel by Joseph Kessel, recounts the struggles and sacrifices of those who fought in the Resistance. Lino Ventura, Paul Meurisse, Jean-Pierre Cassel, and the incomparable Simone Signoret star as intrepid underground fighters who must grapple with their conception of honor in their battle against Hitler’s regime. Long underappreciated in France, the atmospheric and gripping thriller ARMY OF SHADOWS is now widely recognised as the summit of Melville’s career, channeling the exquisite minimalism of his gangster films to create an unsparing tale of defiance in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.

5.45pm: Arrival with a glass of wine!
6pm: Army of Shadows

Dendy Southport

Tickets: 
$23 - 25% discount for Alliance Française & Club Dendy Members* 

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