Amère victoire

Thankfully now available in its full 103-minute version, this is one of Nicholas Ray's strongest works and one of the handful that doesn't bear the marks of studio meddling. It's an unrelentingly grim tale of cowardice and lost love which is almost incidentally set during WWII. Richard Burton manages to deliver cutting, pointed dialogue without making it hammy, and Curt Jurgens' performance of a deceitful squad leader is extremely strong; a coiled spring which never quite releases.

I can't help but wonder if some of the comments above are based upon the US version, which was cut by a whopping 21 minutes, because this is unquestionably one of the best of the Nick Ray canon. Working in many of his trademark themes of sacrifice and loss but keeping the melodrama surprisingly low-key, it's also gorgeously photographed in 'Scope black-and-white and none of the performances falter. Those who have enjoyed ATTACK, HELL IS FOR HEROES, THE BIG RED ONE and particularly Anthony Mann's brilliant MEN IN WAR are well advised to check this out, and it's a must-see for Ray enthusiasts, right up there with ON DANGEROUS GROUND, THE SAVAGE INNOCENTS, JOHNNY GUITAR and IN A LONELY PLACE.

Well directed and atmospherically photographed, this is no mere action film but more a study of the human condition, viewed through a particular prism, distilled in the crucible of conflict.

Slightly odd casting choices here but the quality of the performances is high and the overall result is pretty good. This isn't a film to watch if you just want to see another war flick, this is more a film to watch if you want to see how a character study is made.

I think it adds that this film is in black and white; it is after all the only thing about the film that is, er, black and white. However there is a whole generation of would-be film-goers who simply won't watch films like this one because 'they are old-fashioned' and being in monochrome is seen as part of that. It is their loss, of course, but one wonders how the film would have stacked up had it been made in colour instead.

On paper, one of the chief protagonists ought to have been delighted at the final outcome, but of course this isn't necessarily the case. There are no real heroes here, only the living and the dead, both flawed, and the dead don't get to tell their story.

This isn't a truly great film but it is a pretty good one; definitely worth a watch. Seven out of ten from me.

Possibly Nicholas Ray's most masculine film, he begins with a great opening credits sequence and follows with a studious, procedural atmosphere. When it gets emotionally dramatic quite soon, it remains taut, spare, subdued. Because Ray doesn't tell us how to feel about it, our understanding of the histrionics is that much clearer and unclouded. By the twenty-minute mark, the tension is a natural agreement between us and the film, which sits back viewing objectively horizontal planes, or stationary horizontal shots of whatever natural blocking. Even a shootout in the desert night.

Bitter Victory is a rare treat, a military thriller involving war and covert ops, but focusing not on combat or conspiracies, but on the agitated envy two Allied officers who are situated on a commando raid together. We skip the parachuting in to Bengasi but we're quickly witness to their wordless close calls and perceptions of un-subtitled Arabic. This downbeat emotional drama is what no Jack Ryan or Jason Bourne film would have the nerve or insight to do. It sees combat violence, sneak operations and life-or-death situations, of course, but it does not see the core of the suspense in it. But one of the two central characters, yes, essentially just two, is burying his knowledge that he's unfit for his job and undeserving of his command as deep as he can beneath the assurances of his aggressive justification. Another is having an affair with that very commander's wife, whose emotions are displaced from her husband.

The on-screen violence is far from realistic, but building towards it and simmering down from it are steady and natural to the point that I might even say that it is Ray's most effective film about repression and male anger, even the great In a Lonely Place, in which Humphrey Bogart's outbursts betray an all-too-real recklessness in his eyes. The tension in Bitter Victory makes brief outbursts by, say, the latter said central character, played intensely by Richard Burton, feel twice the jolt of the violence which is expected of his mission. And the tensions heightened by the controlling anger of the commander, in a strong performance by Curt Jurgens, create a balance of ambiguity. We know the crushing inadequacies that haunt the very men we find so brutally cold.

Apart from acting performances I couldn't find many redeeming qualities in "Bitter Victory", and WWII movie about British troops in North Africa. The story revolves around Burton and Roman who were once lovers, and her husband, Curt Jergens. The two men are selected for a secret mission led by Jergens, who lacks courage to do what's necessary and is mocked by Burton throughout the picture.

It is an action picture but descends into a clash of minds and temperaments at the expense of tension and suspense. It is one of Nicholas Ray's poorer directing jobs and the film lacks good set design as well, leaving the viewer to wonder if all production money was spent on the cast. The musical score was tuneless and inappropriate, but in keeping with the overall sub-par nature of the film. Can't recommend it and wished I hadn't wasted the two hours.

Bitter Victory is directed by Nicholas Ray and adapted to screenplay from the novel of the same name written by Rene Hardy. It stars Richard Burton, Curd Jurgens, Ruth Roman, Raymond Pellegrin, Christopher Lee and Nigel Green. Music is by Maurice Leroux and cinematography by Michel Kelber.

It's a film that has proved most divisive over the years, where some have seen fit to devote in depth studies to it, others have bitingly dismissed it as a stretch to far in pretentious posturing. Personally I found it rather dull, a dreary trudge through the World War II deserts as Burton and Jurgens butt heads because Burton's character had an affair with Jurgens' wife (Roman).

The pace is purposely sedate, except for the battle sequence that is, so we are left to rely on the skills of the writers and actors to carry us through to film's end. Burton is good value, he almost always was when he got to brood and pontificate, while Green is his usual irrepressible self. Jurgens, however, is miscast and very uncomfortable with the moody machinations of his character. While the editing is at times awful and a couple of scenes don't really make sense.

Undeniably there is some potency bubbling away in the writing, the deconstruction of machismo and military cynicism angles carry thematic weight, but the film is structured in such a cocksure way it just comes off as being preachy instead of taking full advantage of the emotional core of the characters as written by Hardy. Just because I don't like the film doesn't mean it's bad, as previously stated, many find it fascinating and powerful, but it's not for me and I feel it's one of the great Nicholas Ray's lesser works. 4/10