Today’s movie is a drama with a scene set on April 22. I
hope you will enjoy this film and watch it tonight.
THE WAR OF THE BUTTONS
In Occupied France in 1944, the boys from the village of
Verlans, led by ‘Aztec’ rough up two brothers Petit and Grand Gibus from the
village of Longevergne. A new girl named Violette, the goddaughter of Simone,
the owner of the millinery shop, who for a time owned such a shop in Paris,
arrives in the village. Lebrac, the not very academically bright, but
charismatic leader of the Longevergne boys leads them to Verlans at night,
where they paint insulting slogans on a wall. Violette rebuffs Lebrac’s
attempt’s to talk to her, saying she likes smart men. The Verlans boys push
them in a lake, but Longevergne wins a counterattack and takes the buttons off
the one prisoner they capture. The
police, led by a not very bright former student of Paul, the village
schoolteacher, arrest a Jewish family. Violette changes her mind and tries to
befriend Lebrac, lending him a book about the Punic Wars. Lebrac does not get
along with his father, who he thinks is a coward for not resisting the Germans.
Paul and Simone were once close before she moved to Paris. Libra is assigned
detention for making rude comments in class. The day of his detention coincides
with the next planned battle with Verlans. The Verlans boys torment the Gibus
brothers and Camus who came to ask for a delay and steal their buttons. Lebrac
attacks, but is captured and overpowered, losing his buttons also. Violette
sews new ones on for him. On April 22, 1944 [43:11 to 47:46] Lebrac leads a
raid on the Verlans laundry and steals all their buttons. Violette tells Lebrac
she is actually a Jew and her name is really Miriam. They argue about their differences. Lebrac learns his father is
actually in the Resistance. Lebrac emulates the Battle of Cannae and surrounds
the Verlans boys. He and Aztec fight in single combat and Lebrac wins. The
Longevergne boys expel Bacaillé, the mayor’s son, as they consider him cowardly
for not filching some food for the inauguration of their new clubhouse.
Bacaillé is captured by the Verlans boys, who learn the location of the
clubhouse and burn it down. The Longevergne boys whip Bacaillé as punishment
for betrayal. Lebrac runs away to avoid punishment by his father. When Labrac
and the boys come to apologize to Bacaillé, he refuses to accept their
apologies and says Lebrac’s father is a communist and maybe Violette is a Jew.
The police investigate. Lebrac with the help of Aztec spirits Violette away.
The men, including Paul and the fathers of Aztec and Lebrac toss the police out
of the village. Lebrac leads Violette and Simone to a safehouse.
A film that is both serious and funny. Well worth watching.
At 32:57 the date is given as April 15, 1944. Lebrac is told
he will serve his detention ‘Thursday’ [32:46] which would be April 20, 1944.
The next Saturday [43:23] laundry day at
Valrens would be April 22, 1944.
Producers - Thomas Langmann, Daniel Delume and Emmanuel
Montamat
Director - Christophe Barratier
Screenplay - Stéphane Keller, Christophe Barratier and
Thomas Langmann
Runtime – 1 hour 40 minutes
Released – September 21, 2011
Starring -
Laetitia Casta as Simone
Guillaume Canet as Paul, the teacher
Kad Merad as Lebrac’s father
Gérard Jugnot as Aztec’s father
Jean Texier as Lebrac
Clément Godefroy as Petit (Little) Gibus
Marc-Henri Wajnberg as Vladimir
Théophile Baquet as Grand (Big) Gibus
Louis Dussol as Bacaillé
Harold Werner as Crique
Nathan Parent as Camus
Ilona Bachelier as Violette
Thomas Goldberg as the Aztec
Copyright by Ivan Walters 2014.
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