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{ "item_title" : "A Man Escaped", "item_author" : [" Francois Leterrier "], "item_description" : "Avoiding all the clichés of the prison movie genre, Robert Bresson achieves the impossible in A MAN ESCAPED: he presents a highly minimalist depiction of a prisoner plotting a jailbreak, and is still able to evoke incredible suspense despite the fact that the movie frequently consists of little more than a man toiling away quietly in his cell. Neither Bresson's seemingly odd choice of a past-tense title, nor the fact that the film is based on a real WWII event in which a prisoner successfully escaped a German-run jail in occupied France, lessens the film's impact. As in many of Bresson's films, the protagonist is a possessed individual whose mission sustains him. While he may stubbornly continue planning, the viewer sees the potential hazards he may encounter and feels an incredible sense of tension each time his efforts are stalled. Bresson inserts a spiritual element into the prisoner's behavior by emphasizing the ritualistic nature of his daily activities, and by showing how group activity and trust are required to resist the evil, personified by the Nazi captors. Gripping and sublime, A MAN ESCAPED is a cinematic masterpiece.", "item_img_path" : "https://mediacdn.aent-m.com/prod-img/500/03/1809403.jpg", "price_data" : { "retail_price" : "29.95", "our_price" : "29.95", "club_price" : "29.95", "savings_pct" : "0", "savings_amt" : "0.00", "club_savings_pct" : "0", "club_savings_amt" : "0.00", "discount_pct" : "10" } }
A Man Escaped|Francois Leterrier

A Man Escaped

Francois Leterrier
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Overview

Avoiding all the clichés of the prison movie genre, Robert Bresson achieves the impossible in A MAN ESCAPED: he presents a highly minimalist depiction of a prisoner plotting a jailbreak, and is still able to evoke incredible suspense despite the fact that the movie frequently consists of little more than a man toiling away quietly in his cell. Neither Bresson's seemingly odd choice of a past-tense title, nor the fact that the film is based on a real WWII event in which a prisoner successfully escaped a German-run jail in occupied France, lessens the film's impact. As in many of Bresson's films, the protagonist is a possessed individual whose mission sustains him. While he may stubbornly continue planning, the viewer sees the potential hazards he may encounter and feels an incredible sense of tension each time his efforts are stalled. Bresson inserts a spiritual element into the prisoner's behavior by emphasizing the ritualistic nature of his daily activities, and by showing how group activity and trust are required to resist the evil, personified by the Nazi captors. Gripping and sublime, A MAN ESCAPED is a cinematic masterpiece.

Awards:
1957 - Cannes - Best Director - Winner

Main Cast & Crew:
Robert Bresson - Director
Charles LeClainche
Jacques Ertaud
Roger Planchon
Roland Monod
Francois Leterrier
Cesar Gattegno
Maurice Beerblock
Roger Treherne

Details

    DVD Format
  • Format: DVD
  • Color Format: B&W
  • UPC: 715515104111
  • Genre: MYSTERY / SUSPENSE / THRILLER
  • Rating: NR
  • Release Date: March 2013

Movie Reviews

Synopsis:
A resistance fighter plans his escape from a Nazi prison while his scheduled execution grows nearer. A tense and intelligent thriller.

Notes:
The film was shot in the actual setting in which the action takes place, the Fort Monluc prison in Lyon, France. Bresson won the Best Director prize at the 1957 Cannes Film Festival. The film was voted Best Film of the Year by the French Film Academy.

Reviews:
"...A masterwork of cinematic simplicity..." - Recommended - 09/01/1994 Premiere, p.115


"...[We too] experience the prisoner's anxieties about imminent death or freedom." -- Rating: A+ - 08/12/1994 Entertainment Weekly, p.67


"...Bresson's fact-based French masterpiece..." - 08/26/1994 USA Today, p.3D


"Director Robert Bresson's fact-based French masterpiece..." - 05/28/2004 USA Today, p.6E


"[With] a balance of form and content as perfect as that of the Mozart mass which occasionally underscores the action." - 08/01/2008 Sight and Sound, p.85

BAM Customer Reviews