French director, Louis Malle's "Lacombe, Lucien" is an honest film about one young man's journey into accidentally becoming a Nazi collaborator during occupied France in the 1940s. Pierre Blaise was not an experienced actor when selected to portray the titular character. This could have been disastrous in most instances but Malle's instincts pay off. Blaise's boyish looks and blank stare are the perfect mix in pulling off the tabula rasa that is capable of evil if the circumstances are right. Lucien works as an orderly and helps out at a farm where his mother is shacking up with the owner while his father is in a German prison camp. He goes through life doing chores and farm work taking delight in killing animals whether it is for food or just for something to do (as in the scene where he kills a song bird out of boredom). This rugged, survivalist approach to life is ideal for a life on the farm in the country, however; the world has changed and after being rejected by his teacher to join the Resistance, Lucien seeks to find his place and purpose. By accident, he has a tire puncture on his bike and finds himself at the collaborator headquarters after curfew. Lucien is accepted by them and given drinks, prestige, money, and fine clothes especially after inadvertently turning in the school teacher who had previously rejected him. Taking to this newfound prestige, Lucien uses his power over a Jewish tailor and his family to court the tailor's beautiful daughter, France, and holds the fact that he can turn them in anytime he likes to force them to accept him and to woo France. Lucien is such a misfit that he has no concept of family and thinks bullying his way into their lives will make them accept them. In a strange way, they begin to grow on each other. The tailor even says, "No matter how hard I try, I find it difficult to dislike you." to him. Even in his very limited way, Lucien grows to care about them but can only go so far as he is completely devoid of emotion when consoling France and forces her into sex after she becomes hysterical about her father being sent away. This film conveyed what is the most troubling about this period of history which is that the people who collaborated were regular people who only cared about getting prestige even though it was temporary and it was hollow and devoid of any integrity. They dance, drink, laugh it up and listen to both the German and English news and "split the difference" in order to get a semblance of the truth. One aspect of these scenes was the Great Dane. The way the dog is filmed it was as though he is subtly performing. Sitting quietly, leading Lucien up the stairway and offering a consoling paw to an upset France. The other intriguing character is that of the hotel maid. A homely looking woman whose face shows a life of hardship, reveals upon initiating Lucien into losing his virginity that she is biding her time until the Americans win which is a certainty, only to hurl anti-semitic insults at France upon seeing her with Lucien. This hatred was not borne of any nazi sympathies but rather her frustration at the fact that France has beauty, youth and is treated as an equal for the party and most of all she has Lucien's affections. Despite the maid's strong feelings for Lucien, he has no feelings for her or most people. His show of affection is throwing money at them whether it is his concerned mother or the Tailor's family after being hurt by him. Up to a tragic conclusion that is merely mentioned in text on the screen, the film is powerful in its' simplicity whether it is in the main character or the seemingly peaceful scenery. The most powerful scenes are between Lucien who is a brute with clout and the tailor who tries to cling to his civilized, bourgeoisie ways despite having lost all prestige and status and is very trepiditious around this boy brandishing this power over him and his family that could destroy them so that he can be accepted by them. I am still thinking about this movie 2 days after watching it, very chilling indeed especially since the young actor, Pierre Blaise would die in a car accident with two companions (Time Magazine, Sept. 1975) a year after the film's release.
Review of Lacombe, Lucien
