"The film doesn't show France the way it was, but rather the way Pétain and the Vichy government wanted it to be seen".This sentence sets the tone of "L'Oeil de Vichy", making its message clear : the film offers a non-judgmental description of a period of french history that many people in France still find hard to digest. The filmmakers' overriding goal was to present irrefutable research and visual documentation. This "voyage" to the heart of the collaborationist government never wanders far from the regime's crimes - the film immortalizes scenes of daily life that provide demonstrable proof of Vichy's lies. The straightforward juxtaposition of newsreal images with true facts suffices to explain how France was governed from 1940 to 1944, and who bears the real guilt.
Synopsis
Production and distribution (4)
Box Office: Total results
Box office: Timeline
International releases (2)
| Country | Distributor | Buyer | Release date |
|---|
Show more
Show less
Sorry, your search returned no results.
TV Broadcasts: Cumulative total
TV broadcasts: details by country
About
Critical reception
From Vincent Canby of "The New York Times":
“The Chabrol film is something else: a documentary composed almost entirely of cheery newsreels and propaganda films turned out in France during the occupation. The film has been criticized for not showing what was really going on at the time the newsreels and propaganda films were made, though Mr. Chabrol's own voice-over narration bridges most of those gaps.”
From "TV Guide":
“This documentary from director Claude Chabrol demonstrates how the old-fashioned compilation can still have a dramatic impact when skillfully edited with a carefully crafted narration. Using Vichy's own newsreels and songs, The Eye of Vichy shows the blend of opportunism and native fascism that made up the collaborationist government, undercut by brief references to the items not caught by official cameramen at staged events."
Full credits (7)
Executive Producer :
Voice-over :
Press Attachés (film) :
Eva Simonet, Laurette Monconduit
French Distributor :
Technical details
Feature film
Genres :
DocumentaryThemes :
History, WarProduction language :
FrenchOriginal French-language productions :
UnspecifiedNationality :
100% FrenchProduction year :
1993French release :
10/03/1993Runtime :
1 h 50 minCurrent status :
ReleasedVisa number :
81432Visa issue date :
08/03/1993Approval :
YesColor type :
Black & WhitePosters (1)
