1921-1930 Experimental France Marcel Carné Michel Sanvoisin Silent

Marcel Carné & Michel Sanvoisin – Nogent, Eldorado du dimanche (1929)

adminMarch 1, 2022

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IMDB Review wrote:
Seven years before his first feature-length film “Jenny” ,Carné already displayed the populisme,the command of the picture and the brilliance which would mark his golden era (1936-1946) .With hindsight,it is pity that ,for lack of money,he could not make his final film ,”Mouche” from Guy de Maupassant , which would have taken place down by the Marne ,and which might perhaps have returned him to former glories.

Nogent has remained famous in France thanks to a very popular song about ” the little white whine you drink under the bowers that way of Nogent “.Carné’s short is so dense it’s a wonder he could put so many things in it. The trains heading for the El Dorado ,leaving the offices and its typewriters ;then the place with the swarming crowds :some are swimming,some are fishing,some are rowing.All is masterfully filmed,with an incredible sense of rhythm perhaps inspired by previous experiments by Abel Gance (“La Roue” ).But what Carné likes best ,it’s the Guinguettes where people dance to the tune of an accordion and drink le Petit Vin Blanc.In his last appearance for the cinema,”Carné L’Homme à la Camera” (1985)a documentary by his peer Christian-Jaque ,you can see Carné watch young people dance :he was probably thinking of those magic places “les Guinguettes” which had become a thing of the past.

“Nogent” is like a symphony:its ending is a return to peace and quietness.The last Parisians are leaving ,and as the night is falling,the Marne river keeps on flowing ,waiting for the next Sunday. 9/10