SYNOPSIS
Tobrouk, October 1942, a French commando blows up a German gas depot. Four French soldiers survive the operation and manage to get away but are soon lost in the desert. After an exhausting daylong march, they spot five Germans in an armored car; only one is spared and made prisoner. This is the start of a surprising adventure where, in the face of danger, the men discover the meaning of solidarity.
Awards
Grand prix du Cinéma Français | , France, 1961
CAST & CREW
Denys de La Patellière
Director
Script
René Havard
Director of Photography
Marcel Grignon
Production designer
Paul-Louis Boutié, Madeleine Charlot, José Algueró
Music by
Georges Garvarentz
Sound
Georges Mardiguian
Edit
Jacqueline Thiedot
Cast
Hardy Krüger, Lino Ventura, Maurice Biraud, Charles Aznavour, German Cobos
Production company(ies)
Société Nouvelle des Établissements Gaumont (SNEG), Franco London Films, S.N.E. Gaumont
Denys de La Patellière
Born 1924, Nantes, France. The French director and scriptwriter was initially an assistant to directors, intern and editor in the film industry. His first independently directed film was Aristocrates (1955, based on Michel de Saint-Pierre’s novel)- it bore distinguished criticism. In his next film, The Wages of Sin (1956), greed was spotlighted. Two of de la Patellière most famous films, The Possessors (1958, based on Maurice Druon novel) and Rue des Prairies (1959, original story by René Lefèvre), owe their success to Jean Gabin. His film, The Thunder of God (1959), a drama of an old misanthrope (Jean Gabin), his wife (Lilli Palmer) and their new cohabitant Simone (Michèle Mercier), became a successful blockbuster.
Filmography
The Aristocrats (1955), The Wages of Sin (1956), The Ostrich Has Two Eggs (1957), Retour de manivelle (1957), Thérèse Étienne (1958), The Possessors (1958), Rue de Paris/Rue de Prairies (1959), Eyes of Love (1959), Taxi for Tobruk (1961), Why Paris? (1962), Emile's Boat (1962), Destination Rome (1963), Marco the Magnificent (1965), The Thunder of God (1965), The Upper Hand/Du rififi a Paname (1966), Father's Trip (1966), Soleil noir (1966), Dear Caroline (1968), The Tattooed One (1968), Death of a Jew/Moto Shel Yehudi (1970), Killer (1972), Forbidden Priests (1973).
