Port of Shadows

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Vincent S A masterpiece. A sublime movie with great actors. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/14/23 Full Review Taylor L One of the great pieces of French poetic realism, Port of Shadows is highly aware of its aesthetic and is awash, practically dripping in its tendency towards disillusionment and tragedy. Jean Gabin's Jean, a soldier quietly hitchhiking through the countryside after having deserted, likely wouldn't be looked upon too fondly by a French state with a bellicose German neighbor knocking on the door (and those national attitudes temporarily led to film's suppression), but they did tap into a more human sentiment - the idea of tragic fatalism. Jean's whirlwind romance with Michèle Morgan's Nelly is a spark fanned into a flame practically overnight, as the two find in each other an unlikely respite from their worries, but of course they are ultimately separated by an inherent, universal cruelty. It's melancholy, pessimistic, and perhaps slightly juvenile, but also rather poetic and produced with an intentionally dreamlike quality. (3.5/5) Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/03/22 Full Review Audience Member The characters are uncomplicated, villains and heroes, with clean outlines. The plot is fun, slowly dramatic and deeply romantic. I loved everything about it, including the dark but warm setting. It's a cracking tale even if mildly predictable in places. Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/28/23 Full Review Audience Member Director Marcel Carnà (C) and writer Jacques Prà (C)vert are known for their films made during and just before WWII in a style known as âpoetic realismâ?. Along with Le Jour Se Lève (Daybreak, 1939), Le Quai Des Brumes (Port of Shadows) is typically seen as a part of a doom-laden zeitgeist that infected France before the Nazis invaded. Les Visiteurs du Soir (The Devilâ(TM)s Envoys, 1942) and Les Enfants Du Paradis (Children of Paradise, 1945, their masterpiece) were made during the Occupation. And then the zeitgeist for poetic realism was over. But Port of Shadows and Daybreak, both starring tough guy Jean Gabin, capture the mood, with their doomed love â" or love between doomed people â" depicted with poetic words and poetic images. Here, Gabin plays a soldier (also Jean) who has deserted the army and we first see him coolly hitchhiking to Le Havre, a port city on the English Channel. Seeking refuge, he follows a friendly drunk to an isolated shack where other loners congregate under the welcoming roof of âPanamaâ? (Ãdouard Delmont). There he meets Nelly (Michèle Morgan) who is hiding from her (possibly evil) guardian, Zabel (Michel Simon), and a trio of gangsters led by Lucien (Pierre Brasseur) who are also after Zabel (who has something to do with a missing man). It is love at first sight for Jean and Nelly, but we know that Jean seeks to escape France on a ship bound for Venezuela. Moreover, he has accepted civilian clothes from a painter who leaves them as he swims out to commit suicide, a bad omen if ever there were one. When he defends Nelly by slapping Lucien (an embarrassment more than anything else), we see the gears of the plot start to grind inexorably toward Jeanâ(TM)s doom. He knows it and Nelly knows it but still they love each other and still he gets on board the ship to depart. But a temporary separation instilled with hope is not to be. Such is the plot but it is really the dialogue (Prà (C)vert), the stylized soundstage production design (Alexandre Trauner), the gauzy foggy cinematography (Eugen Schà 1/4fftan), and the noir hero acting (Gabin) that seal the deal (all went on to great things). The melancholy beauty of it all cannot help but bewitch you. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/04/23 Full Review Audience Member Ahead of its time? Check. Laying the foundations for film noir before it was a thing? You betcha. Stuffed to the brim with tragic characters and dark plot elements? Of course! Messy ending towards the final minutes of the film? *sigh*, I suppose nothing that looks this good on paper is ever so perfect, after all... Watched Apr 09, 2018 Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/05/23 Full Review paul d A great, early Film Noir treasure. This is a poetic, romantic melodrama of two desperate and lonely people whose story flirts with bigger philosophical themes, including alienation. It is also a firmly anti-war film, quite a relevant message for 1938. The film's intriguing, stifling atmosphere of fog and shadows is masterful. Gabin and Morgan are radiant and mesmerizing. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Port of Shadows

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