Verdun: Visions d’histoire

Tuesday February 16 • 7pm

Léon Poirier, DVD, 151 min, France, 1927 (Silent)

Verdun visions
This screening of Poirier’s epic silent film coincides almost exactly with the hundredth anniversary of the start of this horrendous World War I battle. Filming began on the tenth anniversary of Verdun using many war veterans as actors (including Marshall Pétain who plays himself!) and combining documentary footage with meticulously staged reenactments. Its pacifist message is delivered through a realistic chronicling of the terrible human toll taken by ten long months of fighting. With musical accompaniment by Renato Umali.

Co-sponsored by the Alliance Française of Milwaukee.