Days of Glory

France, 2006

Director:

Rachid Bouchareb

Starring:

Jamel Debouzze
Samy Neaceri
Roschdy Zem
Sami Bouajila

Matt: -

Adam: B-

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ADAM:

Saw this with Matt actually. He went to the toilet halfway through (never could hold his beer). Upon his return he whispered "did I miss anything?" My first reaction was 'are you joking?'

It. Really. Dragged.

MATT:

A film so powerful it would change the world" reads the tagline and the film certainly lives up to the billing, although - sadly and unsurprisingly - as it's conclusion confirms, the French government still refuses to give back payments on pensions recently (belatedly) given to non French nationals who fought in the army in WW2. This is actually not a bad place to begin a review because the ending is the film's strong point, with a final scene that stays with you for a long time and brings a tear to the eye.

The film is very slow to get going and half way through I thought it was not going to reach the heights I had expected. However, the final 'battle' is brilliantly done and very gripping which more than makes up for the slow burn first half. Also, there are three very strong performances, from Debbouze, Bouajila and Blancan, particularly the former, the best I've so far seen from 2006. Surprisingly though, the cast won "Best Actor" at Cannes for an ensemble performance when the film is a little let down by some of the supporting players, particularly Naceri who lumbers through as Yassir. This aside, it comes highly recommended, especially for those who don't mind their films a little slow in the making.