Summary
At a mountain resort in Haute-Provence, a naive young woman Michèle soon comes
tired of the decadence and low moral standards of her fiancé, a drunken artist
Roland, and his entourage. She is drawn to a young engineer, Julien, whose
diligence and ideals appear to offer her a far better life...
Review
Whilst not necessarily the best film of its time, Lumière d'été
is certainly one of the most important films made in France during World War
II. It allowed its director, Jean Grémillion, to get away with his most vehement
assault on the Haute-Bourgeoisie (as Jean Renoir had attempted to do with his 1939 film
La Règle du jeu
), whilst extolling the nobility of the ordinary hard-working man in the street.
The film also makes a veiled attack on the Vichy régime, which explains both why
the film was banned by the authorities and why it proved to be so popular with the French
people. Beautifully filmed and scripted, the film is surely one of Grémillon’s
most memorable films.
© James Travers 2002
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