Merry Christmas (film)

Merry Christmas is a Film French realized by Christian Carion, left in 2005.

Synopsis

During the summer of 1914, the First World War bursts, involving million human beings in its swirl.

Nikolaus Sprink must give up its extraordinary career of Ténor with the opera of Berlin and not see Anna Sörensen more, its partner whom he loves.

To follow the Jonathan young person who engaged, and who constantly helped it in his church, the priest Anglican Palmer leaves the Scotland and finds stretcher-bearer on the same face of the north of the France.

As for the lieutenant French Audebert, it had to leave his expectant mother and confined to bed to fight the enemy; since its departure, the German occupy the small town of North where the young woman is supposed to have already been confined, unless the worst did not already arrive! Nothing to know is a suffering which taps every night of lieutenant Audebert.

Time passing, snow settles, Christmas arrives with his procession of gifts coming from the families and the staffs. But the surprise does not come from many and generous parcels arriving in the French, German or Scottish trenches. Because it is the unthinkable one which occurs: for a few moments, one will pose rifle to go, a candle with the hand, to see that of opposite, however described since glosses, at the school as well as with the barracks, like a sanguinary monster, and, the usual music of the helping Christmas carols, to discover in him human, to tighten the hand to him, to exchange with him cigarettes and chocolate, and to wish him “a Merry Christmas”, Frohe Weihnachten , Merry Christmas .

Data sheet

Distribution

Around film

  • the portrait of exposure of the situation of the two lines is clear: three countries are in presence, two are allied (France and the United Kingdom by the task force, here of the Scot), but the absence of interallied command is shown directly: the protagonists do not have any means of knowing each other, each country launches out to the attack independently, the string does not exist and the only left report/ratio is that of died by slaughter.

  • the film gathers several episodes of Fraternisation, occurred in various places of the face in Christmas 1914, in order to reinforce his matter. However, all are attested by various testimonys and historical evidence, except for the part of Football, which seems to be a myth, and presence of the professional singer. Fraternizations, the sending of fir trees in the German trenches, exchanges of food products, songs (of which that interpreted by a German tenor recognized by a Scottish soldier), the common mass of Christmas in the No man' S Land, the truce to raise the bodies, the photograph of group, and passage of a trench to another to protect itself from the artillery bombardments thus existed well.

  • However, these fraternizations are not a revolt against the hierarchy, nor against the nonsense of the war. They are more to bring closer to fraternizations between English troop and French troop at the time of the countryside of Spain under Napoleon 1st, one century before, that Mutinerie S of 1917; the majority of the soldiers thought of agreeing only one truce, at one privileged moment (the festival of Christmas) before taking again the combat, and called into question neither their duty, nor the cogency of this war which started. The reconstitution is very precise besides: the French soldiers still carry the uniform garance (the blue uniform horizon arrives later, with the helmet).

  • the film treats with intelligence each part and watch by the images curious the Trêve which could take place between men that all their environment prepared with entretuer; humanity of each one of them proves to be strongest would be this only the space of this known festival whatever the country. Symbol of the advent of a war of a width and an unequalled horror, the resumption of the authorities embarrassed vis-a-vis the phenomenon also announces that from now on the practice of the war will become a All-out war, industrial twilight of Europe.

  • the Pitch comes from a book that Christian Carion read in 1993: Battles of Flandres and Artois 1914-1918 ; it was touched by a passage ( Incredible Christmas of 1914 ) which brought back fraternizations between enemy lines. The realizer carried out an important basic work then to document himself before launching turning.

  • Following a series of dissensions, the French Army refused to lend its grounds to report this passage taboo of its history. If several scenes were turned in North, most of film was filmed in Romania and Scotland. Since this missed turning, the French Army obtained a structure to promote the film turning on the French army grounds.

Rewards

  • the film was presented in official selection except competition at the time of the Cannes festival 2005.
  • Nomination with the César of best film, better scenario, better music, male best supporting role (Dany Boon), better decorations and better costumes in 2006.
  • Nomination at the price of best film in foreign language, at the time of BAFTA Awards 2006.
  • Nomination with the Golden Globe of best foreign film in 2006.
  • Nomination with the Oscar of best foreign film in 2006.

External bonds

  • Official site
  • Construction of a monument in France

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