L'ami y'a bon

"L'ami Y'a Bon" is a very curious movie. While the artwork, to me, wasn't that impressive (having a bit of a homemade look), the story was quite touching. And, interestingly, the story was told with a minimum of language--just a few subtitles here and there explaining the story. My feeling is that it's a remarkable story and you should see it and ignore that it's not the most artistic animated short you'll ever see.

The story begins in East Africa in 1939. A tribesman responds to the French call for men to volunteer for an army to defend the mother country. So, he gives up his wife and daughter and enlists. Despite being captured and sent to a POW camp following the collapse of France in 1940, he survives and eventually returns home. What happens next I really don't want to say as it would spoil the powerful ending--but, sadly, it's based on a real incident of incredible prejudice and indifference.

By the way, it's not all that surprising that this film was a project by the same guy who soon went on to direct "Days of Glory"--a film about prejudice and bravery among Algerian volunteers for WWII.