Godard is considered on of the best directors ever and this is a good example why. The illogical stupidity of war is well reflected in a very illogical screenplay. The director made a deep reflection of things around the war. Stupid arguments to join the army like everything is permitted: to ripe, to steal, to kill innocents, to have a lot of richness, to visit different countries, to have immunity because a letter from the king. Then when the men of the house were convinced to join the king's army started a very interesting sequences where they are describing brutalities of the combats with an apparently cold blood. Actually we can see the handwriting on screen: "We shoot the rebels on the head, we bury them in a common hole, when is full just put some soil on the top". The movie continues in a series of sequences between the two male main characters (Michel Angelo and Ulyses, performed by Albert Juross and Marino Mase, respectively) and the two females at home (Catherine Ribeiro and Genieveve Galea, Cleopatre and Venus). The contact between them is the letters and postcards, where they described a lot of war insanities.
A good sequence occurs when Michel Angelo meets the movies for the first time. He is almost in the front and he reacts with the events in the screen: he feels terrified when the train is arriving to the station and he wanted to "see more" when the young lady is taking a shower. The end is probably the most coherent result of the incoherences showed. The two guys returned home with nothing but postcards as the only richness they obtained and cruel dead at the hands of the men (the rifle men) who recruited them in the first place. At the end war, is so absurd that only absurd things could result of it.
This film was written by Jean-Luc Godard with Roberto Rosellini, based in the homonym play by Beniammino Joppolo. In the natural way of Godard's early films, his technique is full of direct cuts and against Hollywood standards: the camera follows the action and there is no real sequence between the shots. Anyhow the result is superb. If you like different proposals with lot of criticism and situations to make you think and you are against the war and stupidity you will like this movie, if not, well make your conclusions.
A good sequence occurs when Michel Angelo meets the movies for the first time. He is almost in the front and he reacts with the events in the screen: he feels terrified when the train is arriving to the station and he wanted to "see more" when the young lady is taking a shower. The end is probably the most coherent result of the incoherences showed. The two guys returned home with nothing but postcards as the only richness they obtained and cruel dead at the hands of the men (the rifle men) who recruited them in the first place. At the end war, is so absurd that only absurd things could result of it.
This film was written by Jean-Luc Godard with Roberto Rosellini, based in the homonym play by Beniammino Joppolo. In the natural way of Godard's early films, his technique is full of direct cuts and against Hollywood standards: the camera follows the action and there is no real sequence between the shots. Anyhow the result is superb. If you like different proposals with lot of criticism and situations to make you think and you are against the war and stupidity you will like this movie, if not, well make your conclusions.