I'll be the first to admit that I am probably a little more adventurous than many of my movie watching friends and co-workers. Whereas a majority of them will stick to recent or popular fare I have taken an active interest in the history of the film industry and thus will often research great movies from the past. I'm curious to know if movies that have been universally acclaimed as great or classic films are truly great or are they merely reaping the benefit of nostalgia. A movie could be great for it's time or classic in a sense of the era that it was created in or even by who was involved in it's creation. I think it's safe to say that the technological advances in the modern film industry are unprecedented and cannot be ignored. With that being said, technology, in my opinion, cannot replace, diminish or supersede intelligent writing, inspired direction and career-defining performances by legendary actors. The passage of time and the boundaries of language can't lesson the ability of art to captivate those who appreciate artistic things. This is the case with "Les Visituers Du Soir". Despite it's lack of color imagery and it's French only audio or it's age (released in 1942) Marcel Carne's medieval fantasy does not fail to entertain. In doesn't attempt to overwhelm or distract you with excessive action or special effects like most modern fantasies. Rather it delivers convincing depictions of a time and a place that we could only read about before. It's characters and their motivations are easy to relate to and it's pacing is both leisurely and deliberate. It's themes of love, lust, happiness, sadness, jealousy, rejection, hope and despair are universal. I won't cover the plot because so many others have done so but I will give this film my unconditional recommendation to fans of world cinema or just cinema in general. See it.
Review of Les Visiteurs du Soir
