La divine croisière

This early film by Julien Duvivier is long, meandering and has at least two false endings. It's worth watching, however, for two splendid conflagrations vividly tinted red; the former including an electrifying appearance by Line Noro in her film debut.

Yes indeed, if director Julien Duvivier is known for his masterpieces from the thirties to the fifties, his silent period is to be discovered as his cinematographic style was yet very tough. Duvivier was around 33 when he directed this magnificent and visual tale in Brittany (in Paimpol and Loguivy-de-la-mer).

A despotic rich owner of a damaged ship sends his crew with alcohol. The ship sinks and the owner's daughter who's in love with the captain travel on ship to find the crew and her captain.

The entire movie has an inventive visual style, with lot of close ups edited vividly. It's really impressive from beginning to end, and the print is nice and easily available.

Yes, Julien Duvivier was a great French director, one of the best.

In French,like in English ,"divine" has two meanings : 1)heavenly and 2) excellent.

One expects the second meaning to depict Duvivier's work ;but it does not.It's a follow up to "La Merveilleuse Histoire De Thérèse Martin" which makes sense .Both works are Christian movies,the first one,a hagiography ,the second one ,a movie of adventures which verges on supernatural,a providential supernatural in which God himself intervenes and "shows the way" across the "way of gold" .And however ,Duvivier had already lost his faith when he directed these pious movies ;and however when he entered the talkies world ,two years later ,there was no divine inspiration anymore (with the exception of "La Charrette Fantome" ;"Golgotha" was more a depiction of human bestiality -the people eagerly watching the flagellation -).

First scenes of Duvivier's depiction of the gal of human unkindness appear with the character of the wealthy man who sends his crew sailing on an old tub ;the eager faces of the men (in close shot) realizing there's money to be made with the alcohol they transport.

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"Dieu A Besoin Des Hommes " Jean Delannoy " Finis Terrae" Jean Epstein "L'Homme Du Large " Marcel L'Herbier