The Devil's Envoys (1947)

Stylish but barely mediocre overall

Am I Missing Something?

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

The film being produced during the Nazi occupation years by André Paulvé and directed by Marcel Carné leaves some stones not turned over but in spite of all things related to the weather, financing, and German ultimate control of film production. 'Les Visiteurs du Soir,' is a firm declaration that true love can survive in spite of any of the devil's attempts to refute any realism and transcendence of the love between two human souls.A devil's envoy falls in love with Anne, a woman who is engaged to marry another man. Gilles has signed an agreement in blood with the devil to relinquish his soul and must therefore assist him in obtaining more souls. Dominique, also a devil's envoy, gets both Barons Renaud and Hugue to accept the love of herself, despite the fact that she is incapable of loving. Obtaining promises from both of them is enough.

Unbelievably great film. And chilling. At one point I had to press pause and walk away. Granted I do not watch very many truly shocking films but that never happens with me. The story takes place in 1485 but it's about events in 1940. The great director Marcel Carné, for whatever reason, insisted, until his death, the film was not an allegory for Hitler and WWII and that any correlation was unintentional. Why would he deny it for 52 more years after the liberation of Paris? The similarity is astounding and it's surprising that Nazi censors never caught on to ban this film. Carné was under Nazi leadership when he made this. It could have gotten him sent to a concentration camp. But he was sneaky and to this day we have an amazing film about Hitler's rise and the French Resistance. Tremendously well acted. Some complain the film's a little slow but everything builds so nicely and has its place. A masterpiece and highly recommended!8.7 / 10 stars--Zoooma, a Kat Pirate Screener

This was the fifth of the six Great films directed by Marcel Carne between 1937 & 1945, again with writing collaboration from Jacques Prevert, and perhaps the most neglected. So much so I've yet to see a good print, my latest one from French TV seems to have horses galloping (albeit softly) throughout the soundtrack while the film seems to have been bashed about a bit. Never mind; Carne's career was littered with excellent films but Visiteurs was one of his best - maybe it's best seen now without thinking of metaphorical allusions to the then resistance against the Nazis (except as a piece de resistance?) And the best was still a few years off: the utter magnificence of Les Enfants Du Paradis.France 1485: shady Gilles (square jawed Cuny) and Dominique (worldly wise Arletty) arrive at Baron Hugues castle as melancholic minstrels intent on disrupting the marriage preparations going on – as any self respecting devilish envoy would. Alas it goes awry for Gilles when he actually does fall in love with Anne the Baron's daughter (Dea) but Arletty manages to keep to her usual cynical straight and narrow course, and leads the Baron off his. It's beautifully photographed on black & white nitrate film capturing atmospheric sunny days and romantic arc-moonlit nights, gorgeous costumes and fascinating sets equally well. One can almost smell the fresh air! One slight downer: the three midgets go from startling to plain irritating with their omnipresence. It's all about Love, Honour & Purity poetically and elegantly related – which makes the denouement with the supposedly pure Anne and the for once nonplussed Devil so delightful and droll. Even if out of scope for him he should still have been able to guess that all's fair in love!Remember: the Devil will always find work for idle hands to do, including his own. Watch it for a thoughtful two hours of breath taking beauty strolling through a lost world as portrayed by another lost world. Next: Les Enfants Du Paradis.

The beauty of this stand-out collaboration between Jacques Prevert and Marcel Carne - in the middle of their great hitting streak - is that it works even without the 'coded' references which were a necessity at a time of German Occupation in France. So even when you watch Jules Berry as just the Devil and not a symbol for Hitler and likewise view the two visitors not as symbols of the Resistance but merely two wandering minstrels it still plays and you'll go a long way to find a more poetic image/symbol than Prevert's finale in which the Devil turns the lovers to stone before our eyes yet their hearts keep on beating. Not least of the pleasures on offer is future icon Simone Signoret as an extra but the whole schmeer, complete with some tasty lyrics by Prevert, is a total delight. 8/10