''La Vache et le Prisonnier'' (English version: ''"The Cow and I"'') is a French-Italian tragicomedy film from 1959, starring

Fernandel Fernand Joseph Désiré Contandin (8 May 1903 – 26 February 1971), better known as Fernandel, was a French actor and singer. Born near Marseille, France, to Désirée Bedouin and Denis Contandin, originating in Perosa Argentina, an Occitan t ...

and directed by

Henri Verneuil Henri Verneuil (; born Ashot Malakian; 15 October 1920 – 11 January 2002) was a French-Armenian playwright and filmmaker, who made a successful career in France. He was nominated for Oscar and Palme d'Or awards, and won Locarno International ...

, that is based on

Jacques Antoine Jacques Antoine (14 March 1924 – 14 September 2012) was a French creator and producer of game shows. His most famous creations include ''Treasure Hunt (UK game show), Treasure Hunt'', ''Interceptor (game show), Interceptor'', ''Fort Boyard (ga ...

's 1945 novel, ''Une histoire vraie'' (''A True Story''). It tells the story of a French prisoner of war in World War II forced to work on a farm in Germany who decides to escape by walking away with a cow he calls Marguerite (''Daisy'' in English). The most successful film in France in 1959, with over 8 million seats sold, it was also the most successful film of Fernandel's career.

Plot

Charles Bailly, a French prisoner of war in Germany in the summer of 1943, decides to escape from the farm where he is forced to work and go home to France. Observing that a man with a cow and a milk pail passes unnoticed in the

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

n countryside, his plan is to take one (whom he names Marguerite) and to walk with her to Stuttgart, where he will leave her and hide aboard a train for France. Their epic journey takes weeks, during which the two meet many people, some sympathetic and some not. They get into many situations, some dangerous and some hilarious. For example, on a narrow pontoon bridge over the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , p ...

, Marguerite will not budge when a company of German soldiers tries to cross. Reaching Stuttgart, Bailly has to part from Marguerite and jumps on a train. At its first stop in France, he gets off but is challenged by French police. To escape them he jumps on another train, which viewers can see is heading for Stuttgart.

Cast

: Charles Bailly *

René Havard René Havard (20 December 1923 – 7 December 1987) was a French film actor. He appeared in 80 films between 1946 and 1985. He was born and died in Paris, France. Selected filmography * ''That's Not the Way to Die'' (1946) - L'assistant * ...

: Bussière, fellow prisoner on the farm *

Bernard Musson Bernard Musson (1925–2010) was a French actor. Selected filmography * '' It Happened in Paris'' (1952) * '' The Slave'' (1953) * '' On Trial'' (1954) * '' Flesh and the Woman'' (1954) * '' Bonjour sourire'' (1956) * ''Les Truands'' (1956) * ...

: Pommier, fellow prisoner on the farm * Maurice Nasil : Bertoux, fellow prisoner on the farm *

Albert Rémy Albert Rémy (9 April 1921 – 26 January 1967) was a French actor best known for his supporting roles in François Truffaut's first two feature films. He played Antoine Doinel's father in ''The 400 Blows'' and Charlie Koller's (Charles Aznavo ...

: Collinet * Ellen Schwiers : Josépha, the farmer's daughter *

Ingeborg Schöner Ingeborg Schöner is a German film and television actress. Selected filmography * ''The Silent Angel'' (1954) * '' The Dark Star'' (1955) * '' The Captain and His Hero'' (1955) * '' The First Day of Spring'' (1956) * ''King in Shadow'' (1957) ...

: Helga, another farmer's daughter * Franziska Kinz : Helga's mother * Pierre-Louis : an escaped prisoner in disguise * Richard Winckler : another escaped prisoner in disguise * Benno Hoffmann : a prison guard *

Franz Muxeneder Franz Muxeneder (19 October 1920 - 3 January 1988) was an Austrian actor. He appeared in more than one hundred films from 1948 to 1987. Muxeneder is best known in Great Britain for his part in the Yugoslav-German television series ''The White Hor ...

Heinrich Gretler Heinrich Gretler (1897–1977) was a Swiss film and television actor, who also starred on stage at the Bernhard-Theater in Zurich. Selected filmography * '' The Mysterious Mirror'' (1928) * '' Struggle for the Matterhorn'' (1928) * ''The Man ...

* Marguerite : the cow

Production

The film was shot in black and white, and in 1990 a colorized version was released.

Reception

The film has become a national favourite, being shown often on television. Analysing its enduring popularity, a critic in 2017 wrote that the character created by Fernandel embodies: '' .. the typical Frenchman, in his stubbornness, resourcefulness and humanity.''

References

External links

* * http://filmsdefrance.com/FDF_La_vache_et_le_prisonnier_rev.html 1950s war comedy films 1959 films Tragicomedy films Films set in France Films set in Germany World War II prisoner of war films Films based on French novels Films about cattle Films set in 1943 Films directed by Henri Verneuil French black-and-white films Italian black-and-white films French war comedy films Italian war comedy films French World War II films Italian World War II films 1950s French films 1950s Italian films {{WWII-film-stub