Les Maudits

Among all René Clément 's movies dealing with WW2 ("jeux interdits" "la père tranquille" "Paris brûle-t-il?" ...) "les maudits" is simply the best.It might possibly be also Clement's best and I hope many comments will join mine soon.

Nazis are escaping from Germany in 1945 now that the writing's on the wall.They will cross the sea in a submarine and take refuge in South America .Among them ,a general , a manufacturer and his wife (who's the general's lover),a scientist and his daughter,a French collaborator,a "Dritte Reich " die-hard and his minion .The woman is injured and they have no doctor.So,in Royan,they kidnap Guilbert who will be forced to share their desperate odyssey.

Never maybe René Clément's direction has been so impressive:he uses with stunning results the enclosed atmosphere ,where the characters are prisoners:the audience like them is panting for breath.When the doctor enters the place ,the cinematography suggests a descent into hell.

This submarine is really Hell's anteroom.Heightened sensibilities ,suppressed hatred,and reciprocal contempt show because of an unbearable lack of privacy .Guilbert ,the doctor (Vidal) understands that ,because he's not one of "them" ,his days are numbered ,and he's got to play cat and mouse to survive.So strong is the supporting cast that they overshadow the hero (Henri Vidal was a limited actor though).The strange homosexual couple ,Himmler's former henchman (Jo Dest) and his lover (Michel Auclair who gives the most fascinating performance of the whole movie;René Clément met him when he filmed "la Belle et le Bete" with Cocteau ,Auclair played la Belle's brother)are much more than secondary characters.It even includes SM (the nazi whips his minion).

When we leave the submarine-coffin,all we find is the dark waters of an empty sea.And when we call at a harbor in South Africa,we find ourselves in Marcel Dalio's (who was part of "Casablanca" supporting cast!)office,the Venitian blinds of which are carefully lowered;or -in a scene so strong that it rivals the best of Hitchcock-,in the darkness of a coffee warehouse.

This is a must-see movie,which was also remarkable for another reason:everyone speaks his language ,which was not that much obvious at the time,and it adds another suspenseful plus:the hero must not show he understands German.

Henri Jeanson whose sense of humor is intact despite this thoroughly desperate noir story wrote astounding lines:"it looks like Noah's Ark,says the general at the beginning of the film,now all we need is the deluge".

He will not be disappointed.You will not either if you try this Clément overlooked gem.

(1947) Les Maudits/ The Damned (In French with English subtitles) WAR DRAMA

Co-written and directed by René Clément, with the setting takes place just during the end of the second World War, with a U-boat full of Nazi sympathizers, including French and Italian passengers planning to settle in South America for a possible industrialization to support Hitler's cause. All is well until one of the female passengers injures herself with a bad head concussion, forcing them to go undercover to kidnap a French doctor, who eventually takes over to narrate his incredible voyage. Sometimes slow, but still fascinating that has never been done before.

French war drama by Rene Clement

This film is really a surprise! Rene Clement, who a decade later filmed a Tom Ripley novel by Patricia Highsmith for the first time with Alain Delon in the leading role of "Plein soleil" (1959), presents here a wonderfully nasty war thriller that is incredibly exciting .

In the final days of the Second World War, a submarine sets sail from Oslo carrying a number of extremely disgusting Nazis from Germany and Nazi sympathizers from other countries. All these miserable people want to escape to South America to escape the impending defeat. Deluded as they all are, this mishmash actually forgot to bring a doctor on board. But they need it after the little accident involving a mild-mannered full-blooded fascist (Florence Marly). Without further ado, you go ashore in Rovan, France, and kidnap the local country doctor (Henri Vidal (1919-1959), who, shortly before his untimely death, was with Romy Schneider in "Ein Engel auf Erden" and Brigitte Bardot in "Voulez-vous danser avec moi?" was visible) on the submarine. And we continue towards South America so that the drama can continue.

This short description of the starting point makes it clear what is so unusual and exciting about this film. Most of the scenes take place in the confines of a submarine, creating a setting that is very reminiscent of "Das Boot" (1981) by Wolfgang Petersen and does not need to shy away from this comparison. The film is basically narrated by the kidnapped country doctor, which gives a special and initially unusual perspective. French and German are spoken, which of course fits perfectly with the characters in the story. In addition, the characters are so unpleasant and their actions are so disturbing that the viewer is simply surprised. This film dares to focus on extreme monsters as anti-heroes. Even the country doctor as the only identification figure is not a shining hero, but rather someone who is placed in a hopeless situation and has to struggle to defend himself.

The actors in this film are terrific. The characters they portray form an impressive collection of Nazi abominations: there is the ardent fascist who is linked to both an Italian entrepreneur and a German general, an informant, a scientist, all of whom supposedly believe in final victory. But the most disgusting and impressive are the SS man Forster (Jo Dest) and his "adjutant" Willi Morus (great: Michel Auclair, who later also appeared in "Funny Face" (1957) by Stanley Donen and "Days of the Jackal" (1973). By Fred Zinneman), which are linked by an ambivalent sado-masochistic connection, which is truly remarkable for a film from this period.

This film is a little pearl with breathtaking scenes that should definitely be discovered. Highly recommended!

With the Nazi occupation still fresh in everyone's minds, it was no surprise that France made a movie about the Nazis. To be certain, René Clément's movie is one of the all-time masterpieces. "Les maudits" ("The Damned" in English) is about a group of Nazis and their sympathizers who board a submarine to South America towards the end of WWII, hoping to escape the consequences of Germany's defeat. But when an accident forces them to make a stop and pick up a doctor, things take a different turn.

This is one of the most claustrophobic movies that I've ever seen. Other reviewers have noted the similarities to "Das Boot". Whatever the case, the movie brings up the issue of responsibility. One could make the argument that the doctor has enabled these Nazis' crimes, even if he acted unwillingly. After all, the people aboard this submarine were very much committed to fascism.

Anyway, a fine piece of work. I intend to see more of Clément's movies now.

A group of Nazi sympathizers of various nationalities board a submarine at Oslo on a secret mission to land in South America where it is planned that Hitler and the Third Reich will rise up once again. On navigating the English Channel, one of the party gets injured – Florence Marly (Mdm Garosi). She needs a doctor and it's the one thing that has been overlooked on this journey. So, they stop over in France and kidnap one – Henri Vidal (Guilbert). They resume their journey with the new arrival who realizes that his life is in danger as he now knows too much – he has to survive by making himself indispensable to the gang.

The whole story is pretty much set aboard the submarine. It's a novel setting and provides the necessary claustrophobic atmosphere as we wonder how and when our doctor hero is going to make his escape. Other characters don't fare too well when deciding to break free from the clutches of evil Jo Dest (Forster). By the way, this Dest character is a cartoon character Nazi who has a blatant homosexual arrangement with his young muscleman as played by Michel Auclair (Willy). Dest's male bitch is even given the name 'Willy' so that you are under no doubt that they like playing with each other's willies.