Der Gute und die Bösen (1976)
Der Gute und die Bösen / The Good Guys and the Bad Guys (1976)
A Film by Claude Lelouch
DVD9 (VIDEO_TS) | PAL 16:9 (720x576) | 01:56:46 | 6,60 Gb
Audio: German AC3 2.0 @ 224 Kbps; French AC3 2.0 @ 224 Kbps | Subs: English
Genre: Crime, Drama | France
A Film by Claude Lelouch
DVD9 (VIDEO_TS) | PAL 16:9 (720x576) | 01:56:46 | 6,60 Gb
Audio: German AC3 2.0 @ 224 Kbps; French AC3 2.0 @ 224 Kbps | Subs: English
Genre: Crime, Drama | France
This is the story of Jacques, a young car mechanic who dreams of becoming a professional boxer, and his kind-hearted Jewish friend, Simon. In the 1930s, the two men steal a car with a powerful engine that can outrun any other road vehicle and embark on a life of crime – robbing banks and acting as latter day highwaymen. A redoubtable police inspector, Bruno, is close to bringing the two men to justice, but then World War II intervenes. Whilst Jacques and Simon end up, quite by chance, supporting the French Resistance, Bruno consciously decides that his best interests lie in collaborating with the German police. Their paths are bound to cross…
IMDB
Also Know As:
- Le Bon et les méchants - original French title
- The Good and the Bad
Der Gute und die Bösen (1976)
Le Bon et les méchants, Claude Lelouch’s "good guy, bad guy" morality tale set at the time of the Nazi occupation of his country, is a curiously detached work, yet one which is subtly etched with irony and humanity. Given Lelouch’s own Jewish background, it is remarkable that he could make such a film in the way that he does. The film’s thesis is that there are no such thing as bad men or good men – to a large extent, our actions are driven by external events over which we have little control. This is an extraordinarily generous sentiment but it does expose a certain naivety and, in that respect, the film feels awkwardly simplistic.
Der Gute und die Bösen (1976)
![Der Gute und die Bösen (1976)]()
Given the body of historical evidence, there can be no question that bad men exist and that bad men exploited the Nazi regime for their own purposes, and this is something the film tends to push to one side, giving a somewhat distorted view of reality. On the other hand, it is equally true that the majority of people who lived under the Nazi occupation were hostages to fortune, doing what they could do ensure their own survival after their government threw in their collective towel. In that respect, this film gives us a valid comment on the period, making no bones about the fact that human nature is much more complex than most film makers would have us believe.
Der Gute und die Bösen (1976)
![Der Gute und die Bösen (1976)]()
The popularity of Lelouch’s films – with the cinema-going public if not the critics - ensured that this particular New Wave director had little difficulty hiring talented actors. As in many of his films, the cast list of Le Bon et les méchants now reads like a "Who’s Who" of French cinema. Jacques Dutronc and Jacques Villeret head an impressive cast which includes Brigitte Fossey, Marlène Jobert, Serge Reggiani and Bruno Cremer. This over-abundance of acting talent is admittedly somewhat gratuitous but it does help to mask some of the film’s technical deficiencies. The sepia photography is attractive but doesn’t really add much to the film – if anything it distances the audience from the drama and emphasises the impression that this is a sanitised view of history. Lelouch’s predilection for long takes filmed with an erratically meandering camera is also slightly irritating, particularly when a cut between static shots would have been more natural.
Der Gute und die Bösen (1976)
![Der Gute und die Bösen (1976)]()
Despite its sentimentality and cinematic excesses, Le Bon et les méchants should be considered one of Claude Lelouch’s most worthy films – not because it is a masterpiece (which it isn’t) but because it challenges our notions of good and evil. In so doing, it offers a more credible portrait of life under the Nazi occupation than many "more serious" films have dared.James Travers, Films de France
Der Gute und die Bösen (1976)
The story about being good and bad in different conditions, times and places. When obeying rules in one situation can be interpreted as the good behavior but in the other not. ……. we see characters which are in fact born to fight against each other because they see the world in completely different ways …….. we see that in some situations being bad or good is split by a very thin border which is very easy to cross in both directions
…and completely different thing is the way people around see us
everything is very well acted and what is very important with high probability this incredible story could happen in the pastIMDB Reviewer
Der Gute und die Bösen (1976)
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