Indocina

Indochine is a wonderful, poignant film set in the 30's during the French Vietnam conflicts. Catherine Deneuve is the terribly engrossing heroine,Elaine Devries, who uses her wealthy status as a rubber plantation owner to cover up her affairs. However, things get complicated when her adopted daughter falls in love with her much younger lover. This movie shows a wonderful unbiased perspective about Vietnam, and the acting is superb, with Vincent Perez and Dominique Blanc. This is a intricate and complex movie that will leave you thinking long after the movie is finished.

Epic and spectacular movie plenty of romance , emotion , intense drama and historical events . In Vietnam before the American there lived the French . It deals with a plantation owner , Eliane : Catherine Deneuve , who creates a particular civilization transported to her hothouse and along the way she contends with the changes to her country . Deneuve starts a loving story with a young naval officer, Vincent Perez . But later on , he has a passionate affaire with Deneuve's adopted daughter, Linh Dan Pham , who grows up and becomes independent . Things go wrong when the French officer , Vincent Perez , is sent to a far outpost on the Gulf of Tonkín , shortly after, there appears the young Vietnamese girl . Midway throughout , having involved us so deeply in colonial Enterprise , he abruptly cut our cultural ties and plunged into the sweeping as well as bloody revolutionary myth . After that , the lovers get together and go on the run , being hidden by the communist guerrilla posing as theatre players . When the girl is incarcerated she discovers her people .

This is a lush romanticism movie , the alegorical intimitations can not be entirely believable , however the film is attractive and interesting , though overlong . It is almost as exotic as the breathtaking Vietnam landscape . It is rather enervatingly composed with long and boring scenes , but photography and gorgeous outdoors make up for it , though pacing could be certainly tighter . Deneuve gives a nice and controlled acting in her usual fashion as a powerful woman reared in Indochina from 1930 , following her life until the communist revolution 25 years later . She displays an unchanging and cold beauty that is eminently watchable . She is well accompanied by the young Vincent Perez and Linh Dan Pham . Along with notorius French secondaries as Jean Yanne and Dominique Blanc.

Shot on location in Vietnam with impressive and exquisite cinematography by Francois Catonne . It was filmed on location in Vietnam, Malaysia, and France. Some scenes were shot at Hue Palace and slave market frames were filmed in Halong Bay in Northeastern Vietnam, and several images from Paris . It contains a sensitive and evocative musical score by Patrick Doyle . The motion picture was professionally directed by Regis Wargnier . Regis is a good filmaker who has directed some nice and interesting films , such as : ¨The gate¨ , ¨Have mercy on us all¨, ¨The ligne droite¨ , ¨Une femme Francaise¨, ¨I am the king of the castle¨, ¨The woman of my life¨ and his greatest hit, ¨Indochina¨. It won several prizes and nominations . Being France's official submission to the 1993's Oscars in the best foreign language film category and it achieved Hollywood Academy Award to the Best Foreign film and various Golden Globes . And a lot of Cesar awards , such as : Actress, Art direction, cinematography, sound, and support actress Dominique Blanc. Rating : 6.5/10. Well worth seeing. Better than average.

OK let's get it out of the way up front, Eliane IS France, Camille IS Vietnam the story is their story. Of course it is told from the French viewpoint, France is telling the story about her child growing up. It is a sad story, the French lost. It was not a happy story for the Vietnamese they had to fight for 2 more years to be reunited and struggle for 15 more to start to come out of the whole process. That said this is one of the most beautiful movies ever made, period.

The intricate ballet of personal dealings and politics is carried out so well that one can easily get lost in the levels, just as one can get lost in the intricate dance that is life in Asia. What you see is what you see, it may be more or less depending.

I do not believe that the movie defends France not does it condemn her. That part of the story is wisely left alone, what remains is a human drama of the folly of resisting the inevitability of change. As the film unfolds the sheer weight of history comes down on all involved.

It is that weight that brings the tears. From the time that Jean-Baptiste is brought to Saigon to the closing credits, there is no escape for anyone. The old order is out the new is awaiting its time of entry upon the stage. It is a time for tears, a time to mourn and ultimately a time to heal.

Americans in particular have a funny sense of history. We forget that others have been down the same roads before us. France's relationship with vietnam was most likely more of a force in the history of its people than ours with all of our napalm will ever be, because the French left a legacy of life that could be seen even in the senslessness of the American presence.

This movie captures that relationship and transcends it. Masterpiece is the lest one can say about such a work.

After seeing The Scent of Green Papaya, I was not expecting much, just a vehicle for Catherine Deneuve. And while it most definitely is that, it is also so much more.

The stunning cinematography, the elegant score, and the epic love story set against the turbulent colonial times. I was quite taken with the myriad plot twists. Too bad our high schooler has a 3minute attention span.

This is a very real depiction of colonialism. One reviewer noted the maternalism of Deneuve's character while pointing out the brutality of the slave sellers. People expecting a total condemnation of colonialism or a total condemnation of communism just don't see the gray between the black and white. Unfortunately, only Europeans could have made this movie. There is no didactic viewpoint, which is why some Americans don't react well to it. While the ending is a bit flat, it still doesn't detract from the fact that this was a great movie.

One of the little pleasures of this movie is listening to the Vietnamese housemaid's pidgin French and reading the subtitled translation. While movies like The Scent of Green Papaya are wonderful and deserve all the accolades they are accorded, this movie is very underrated. Green Papaya is a nice cultural experience but it can't come close to Indochine for grit and history. 3 1/2 stars out of 4.

I've seen at least 10-20 post-Vietnam movies, nearly all concentrating on the war or the aftermath of a war in a country that most Americans know absolutely nothing about (including me).

What a relief it was to learn something about the years of mistreatment Indo-Chine (or Vietnam) suffered at the hands of the French colonists who seem to have the 'reverse-Midas-touch' when it comes to their land possessions. Then again, I suppose this is the way of all colonists who invariably mistreat their 'possessions'..

The acting was terrific by all involved. Learning the pre-war background behind the extreme North/South polarizations and seeing all the strife that's touched Vietnam was the best lesson I've yet gleaned from any Vietnam movie.

I think a cure has finally been developed for Oliver Stone.

As high a rating as possible.