Joyeux Noël (2005)

Genre

Drama | History | War

Director

Christian Carion

Country

France | Germany | UK | Belgium | Romania

Cast

Diane Kruger, Benno Fürmann, Guillaume Canet, Gary Lewis, Alex Ferns, Dany Boon, Daniel Brühl, Christian Carion, Christopher Fulford, Mathia Herrmann, Neil McNulty, Lucas Belvaux, Steven Robertson, Suzanne Flon, Bernard Le Coq, Ian Richardson

Storyline

In December 1914, the Scottish, the German and the French troops have a moment of truce and share moment of peace and friendship.

Opinion

I've been meaning to watch this for ages but never got around it because it's about WWI, the World War I never liked. The other night I finally decided to watch it and I do regret not doing it earlier.

Easily one of the best films about WWI ever made, "Joyeux Noël" is a wonderful and moving feel-good film that shows mankind at its best.

What makes this film different than other feel-good movies? The story. Since it's based on real events, it was a story worth telling, and the filmmakers did a wonderful job both writing and telling it. The plot is fantastic, well developed and extremely engaging. I'm not sure how many liberties were taken, but I'm sure they kept intact the message, a credible, genuine message of hope.

To successfully portray the flaws of war and the common desire for peace of the soldiers, director Christian Carion used a combination of comedy and drama that is just perfect. The heartbreaking moments are perfectly balanced with heartwarming ones. Also the use of three different languages makes the film even more beautiful because it shows that friendship can tear down all barriers.

Just like other before it, "Joyeux Noël" truly shows the absurdity of war, where young men are forced to kill each other while those who started the war, the political leaders, do nothing but stay at home enjoying their lives like nothing is happening.

This film not only is entertaining and does have a powerful message, but it's also beautiful to look at. The cinematography and the editing are indeed absolutely stunning and flawless. The sets are spectacular. Also, the musical score is fantastic, and the cast is excellent.

2 comments :

  1. Great review! I liked this one too, though it's been ages since I've seen it. It's one of the few WWI movies I've actually watched.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks! I haven't seen a lot of WWI movies either but this is easily one of my favourites. If not my absolute favourite.

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