''A Very Long Engagement'' () is a 2004 romantic

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

, co-written and directed by

Jean-Pierre Jeunet Jean-Pierre Jeunet (; born 3 September 1953) is a French film director and screenwriter. His films combine fantasy, realism, and science fiction to create idealized realities or to give relevance to mundane situations. Jeunet debuted as a direc ...

and starring

Audrey Tautou Audrey Justine Tautou (; born 9 August 1976) is a French actress. She made her acting debut at age 18 on television, and her feature film debut in '' Venus Beauty Institute'' (1999), for which she received critical acclaim and won the César Awa ...

, Gaspard Ulliel and

Marion Cotillard Marion Cotillard (; born 30 September 1975) is a French actress who has appeared in both European and Hollywood productions. She is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Marion Cotillard, various accolades, including an Ac ...

. It is a fictional tale about a young woman's desperate search for her fiancé who might have been killed during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. It was based on the 1991 novel of the same name by

Sébastien Japrisot Sébastien Japrisot (; 4 July 1931 – 4 March 2003) was a French author, screenwriter and film director. His pseudonym was an anagram of Jean-Baptiste Rossi, his real name. Renowned for subverting the rules of the crime genre, Japrisot broke do ...

. The film is a co-production between France and the United States. It was released theatrically in France on 27 October 2004 and in the United States on 26 November 2004. The film received

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

nominations for Best Art Direction and Best Cinematography at the

77th Academy Awards The 77th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), took place on February 27, 2005, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST. Durin ...

. Marion Cotillard earned the

César Award for Best Supporting Actress The César Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role (French: ''César de la meilleure actrice dans un second rôle'') is one of the César Awards, presented annually by the ''Académie des Arts et Techniques du Cinéma'' to recognize the outst ...

, while Gaspard Ulliel won the

César Award for Most Promising Actor Cesar or César may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''César'' (film), a 1936 French romantic drama * ''César'' (play), a play by Marcel Pagnolt Places * Cesar, Portugal * Cesar Department, Colombia * Cesar River, in Colombia * Cesar ...

at the 30th César Awards.

Plot

Five French

soldiers A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, a warrant officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word ...

are convicted of self-mutilation in order to escape military service during

. They are condemned to face near-certain death in no man's land between the French and German

trench A trench is a type of digging, excavation or depression in the ground that is generally deeper than it is wide (as opposed to a swale (landform), swale or a bar ditch), and narrow compared with its length (as opposed to a simple hole or trapping ...

lines. It appears that all of them were killed in a subsequent battle, but Mathilde, the fiancée of one of the soldiers, refuses to give up hope and begins to uncover clues as to what actually took place on the battlefield. She is all the while driven by the constant reminder of what her fiancé had carved into one of the bells of the

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

near their home, MMM for ''Manech aime Mathilde'' (Manech loves Mathilde; a pun on the French word ''aime'', which is pronounced like the letter "M". In the English-language version, this is changed to "Manech's marrying Mathilde"). Along the way, she discovers the brutally corrupt system used by the

French government The Government of France (, ), officially the Government of the French Republic (, ), exercises Executive (government), executive power in France. It is composed of the Prime Minister of France, prime minister, who is the head of government, ...

to deal with those who tried to escape the front. She also discovers the stories of the other men who were sentenced to no man's land as a punishment. With the help of a private investigator, Germain Pire, she attempts to find out what happened to her fiancé. The story is told both from the point of view of the fiancée in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

and the French countryside—mostly

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

—of the 1920s, and through flashbacks to the battlefield. Eventually, Mathilde finds out her fiancé is alive, but he suffers from amnesia. Seeing Mathilde, Manech seems to be oblivious of her. At this, Mathilde sits on the garden chair silently watching Manech with tears in her eyes and a smile on her lips.

Cast

Production

''A Very Long Engagement'' was filmed in France over an 18-month period, with about 30 French actors, approximately 500 French technicians and more than 2,000 French extras. Right before the film's New York City and Hollywood debut, the film's production company, 2003 Productions, which is one-third owned by Warner Bros. and two-thirds owned by Warner France, was ruled an American production company by a French court, denying the studio $4.8 million in government incentives. The film had a production budget of

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists of a stylized letter E (or epsilon), crossed by t ...

45 million (

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

58 million), and earned $69.4 million in theaters worldwide. Joséphine Japy auditioned for the role of a child in the film. She did not get the role but she credits her encounter with

as being decisive in her desire to become an actress. Following the audition, Jeunet came up to Japy and standing at her height, said: "Joséphine, can I talk to you like an adult? Today, it won't be you, but one day, we'll meet again...". Japy said that Jeunet's words had a real resonance and made her "want to hang on, believe and keep going", and if Jeunet had not taken the time to say that to her that day, she might not be here alking to the interviewer

Release

Warner Independent Pictures released the film theatrically in the US, followed by VHS and DVD release on July 12, 2005. It was Warner Independent Pictures' final VHS release. A Blu-ray region B disc from

Warner Home Video Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment, Inc. (doing business as Warner Bros. Home Entertainment; formerly known as Warner Home Video and WCI Home Video and sometimes credited as Warner Home Entertainment) is the American home video distribution ...

was released in France.

Reception

Critical response

The film received generally positive reviews from critics. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, 79% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 146 reviews, and an average rating of 7.40/10. The website's critical consensus states, "A well-crafted and visually arresting drama with a touch of whimsy". On

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

the film has a weighted average score of 76 out of 100, based on reviews from 39 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.

Peter Travers Peter Joseph Travers (born June 27, 1943) is an American film critic, journalist, and television presenter. He reviews films for ABC News and previously served as a movie critic for ''People'' and ''Rolling Stone''. Travers also hosts the film i ...

of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' praised "miracle worker" Jean-Pierre Jeunet and called the film "an emotional powerhouse".

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

of the ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...

'' wrote: "Jeunet brings everything together—his joyously poetic style, the lovable Tautou, a good story worth the telling—into a film that is a series of pleasures stumbling over one another in their haste to delight us."

Manohla Dargis Manohla June Dargis ( ) is an American film critic. She is the chief film critic for ''The New York Times''. She is a five-time finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism. Career Before being a film critic for ''The New York Times'', Dargis ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' gave a negative review, stating that "Mr. Jeunet shows no interest in animating the characters in his dollhouse world".

Awards

The film received Academy Award nominations for Best Art Direction and Best Cinematography at the 77th Oscars, losing both to '' The Aviator''. It was not selected as the French submission for the

Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...

, in favor of '' The Chorus''. Marion Cotillard won the

César Award Cesar or César may refer to: Arts and entertainment * César (film), ''César'' (film), a 1936 French romantic drama * César (film), ''César'' (play), a play by Marcel Pagnolt Places * Cesar, Portugal * Cesar Department, Colombia * Cesar R ...

for Best Supporting Actress for her performance, while Audrey Tautou was nominated for Best Actress. * 30th César Awards (France) ** Won: Best Supporting Actress (Marion Cotillard) ** Won: Best Cinematography (

Bruno Delbonnel Bruno Delbonnel, , (born 1957) is a French cinematographer, known for works from a number of high-profile directors, including Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Tim Burton, the Coen brothers, Joe Wright and Wes Anderson. Life and career Delbonnel was born ...

) ** Won: Best Costume Design ( Madeline Fontaine) ** Won: Best Production Design ( Aline Bonetto) ** Won: Most Promising Actor (Gaspard Ulliel) ** Nominated: Best Actress (Audrey Tautou) ** Nominated: Best Director (Jean-Pierre Jeunet) ** Nominated: Best Editing (Hervé Schneid) ** Nominated: Best Film ** Nominated: Best Music (Angelo Badalamenti) ** Nominated: Best Sound (Vincent Arnardi, Gérard Hardy and Jean Umansky) ** Nominated: Best Original Screenplay or Adaptation (Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Guillaume Laurant) * London's Favourite French Film 2006 (United Kingdom) ** Won: Best Film *

(USA) ** Nominated: Best Art Direction (Aline Bonetto) ** Nominated: Best Cinematography (Bruno Delbonnel) *

BAFTA Awards The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs or BAFTA Awards, is an annual film award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best Cinema of the United Kingdom, British and Worl ...

(UK) ** Nominated:

BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language The BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language is a film award given annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts and presented at the British Academy Film Awards. The award was first given at the 36th British Academy F ...

* 10th Critics' Choice Awards (USA) ** Nominated: Best Foreign-Language Film *

Boston Society of Film Critics Awards Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and financial center of New England, a region of the Northeastern United States. It has an area of and a ...

** Runner-up: Best Foreign Language Film *

Chicago Film Critics Association The Chicago Film Critics Association (CFCA) is an association of professional film criticism, film critics, who work in print, broadcast and online media, based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The organization was founded in 1990 by film cri ...

(USA) ** Won: Best Foreign Language Film * Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association (USA) ** Won: Best Foreign Language Film ** Placed 9th: Top 10 Films *

Florida Film Critics Circle The Florida Film Critics Circle (FFCC) is a film critic organization founded in 1996. The FFCC comprises 30 film critics from Florida-based print and online publications. At the end of each year, the FFCC members vote on the Florida Film Critic ...

(USA) ** Won: Best Foreign Film * Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards (USA) ** Won: Best Foreign Language Film *

Golden Globe Awards The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual Awards ceremony, award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally ...

(USA) ** Nominated: Best Foreign Language FilmGolden Globes
/ref>

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Very Long Engagement 2004 films 2000s French-language films French war drama films French World War I films Films shot in Haute-Corse 2000s war drama films Anti-war films about World War I Edgar Award–winning works Films based on French novels Films based on military novels Films directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress César Award–winning performance Films produced by Jean-Pierre Jeunet Films whose cinematographer won the Best Cinematography César Award Films whose director won the Best Director Lumières Award Films with screenplays by Jean-Pierre Jeunet France in World War I 2000s historical romance films War romance films Warner Bros. films Warner Independent Pictures films Western Front (World War I) films Novels set during World War I Films set in France Films set in Corsica Films shot in France Films shot in Corsica Films scored by Angelo Badalamenti Films based on works by Sébastien Japrisot French historical romance films 2004 drama films American war drama films 2000s American films 2000s French films Films about women in France French-language American films