The Eye of Vichy is the first film I've seen by Claude Chabrol, a respected French filmmaker who hasn't gotten much respect my friends. I have been told that Chabrol's work is boring and pretentious. I didn't find that from this film, but than again, it's atypical of the director's work. It's a compilation film, consisting entirely of vintage newsreels from occupied France during World War II, with occasional narration from actor Brian Cox. Although the movie goes on too long, it does make it's point- France became essentially a fascist state under its collaborationist leader, Philippe Pétain, after its military defeat to Germany. It's disconcerting, to say the least, to see some of this sickening propaganda in a language other than German, Japanese, or Russian, especially when the political stuff is contrasted with product commercials that completely ignore that anything's wrong in the country at all. This is a fascinating film that could be cut by about a half four. Still, this is not going to be the end of my Chabrol experience.
The Eye of Vichy (1993)