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''The 317th Platoon'' (french: La 317ème section) is a 1965 French black-and-white
war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...
set during the
First Indochina War The First Indochina War (generally known as the Indochina War in France, and as the Anti-French Resistance War in Vietnam) began in French Indochina from 19 December 1946 to 20 July 1954 between France and Việt Minh ( Democratic Republic of ...
(1946–54) written and directed by Pierre Schoendoerffer. The film was based on Schoendoerffer's 1963 novel of the same name.


Plot

In 1954 while the
Battle of Dien Bien Phu The Battle of Dien Bien Phu (french: Bataille de Diên Biên Phu ; vi, Chiến dịch Điện Biên Phủ, ) was a climactic confrontation of the First Indochina War that took place between 13 March and 7 May 1954. It was fought between the ...
is being fought, the 317th Platoon, composed of Laotian suppletive troops, a French officer and several NCOs, is ordered to go to the Tao-Tsai post in North Cambodia. From there it hopes to reach friendly ground and evacuation towards Kratieh on the Mekong. The leaders of the platoon are the fresh Second-Lieutenant Torrens and Warrant Officer (Adjudant) Willsdorff, a highly experienced soldier who is in his third turn in Indochina. Willsdorff is an Alsatian who was incorporated by force in the German Wehrmacht and fought on the Russian front. One of the NCOs Sergeant Roudier is mortally wounded in an early encounter set off unnecessarily by his officer's verve. The Laotian troops place their trust in cautious Willsdorff who knows the ropes and leads hardly by proxy through the marshes and tropical forests of Cambodia. Meager supplies are parachuted to the platoon by a friendly plane but part of the load is dropped into enemy lines. Fatality strikes and Lt Torrens eventually dies. Willsdorf leaves him to take refuge with Moï mountain tribes.


Cast

*
Jacques Perrin Jacques Perrin (born Jacques André Simonet; 13 July 1941 – 21 April 2022) was a French actor and film producer. He was occasionally credited as Jacques Simonet. Early life Jacques André Simonet was born on the Boulevard Port-Royal in P ...
as 2nd Lt Torrens * Bruno Cremer as L'adjudant Willsdorf * Pierre Fabre as Sgt Roudier * Manuel Zarzo as caporal Perrin, radio operator * as sergent supplétif Ba Kut


Production

Schoendoerffer had been a POW in Vietnam following the French defeat at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. The film was shot with a crew of six in the middle of a Cambodian forest during the rainy season. Extreme realism is constant throughout a gripping film shot barely ten years after the actual events took place. French military routine, drills and jargon are perfectly depicted. "I imposed a strict military regime on everyone," Schoendoerffer said. "A war film shouldn't be made in comfort.""Obituary: Pierre Schoendoerffer". Bergan, Ronald. ''The Guardian'' 16 March 2012: 36. "He was one of the few directors of war movies with first-hand experience of conflict". ct".


Reception

It was entered into the
1965 Cannes Film Festival The 18th Cannes Film Festival was held from 3 to 16 May 1965. Olivia de Havilland became the first woman president of the jury. The Grand Prix du Festival International du Film went to '' The Knack …and How to Get It'' by Richard Lester. The ...
where it won the award for Best Screenplay. It was the 21st most popular film at the French box office in 1965.


Legacy

In 2018, military historian Sir
Antony Beevor Sir Antony James Beevor, (born 14 December 1946) is a British military historian. He has published several popular historical works on the Second World War and the Spanish Civil War. Early life Born in Kensington, Beevor was educated at two i ...
named ''The 317th Platoon'' as "the greatest war movie ever made", "followed closely by 1966's '' The Battle of Algiers''".


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:317th Platoon, The 1965 films 1960s French-language films French war films First Indochina War films French black-and-white films Films directed by Pierre Schoendoerffer Films based on French novels 1965 war films 1960s French films