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Froster
Nov 29, 2014Froster rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Very likely Louis Malle's masterpiece. This film dares to examine not only the nature of evil, but also a very specific time and place with cool precision and great aesthetic values. Because it is so detailed and specific, so human in scope, its lessons transcend the particulars, and seem universal. The villains are as fully human as the victims, and both are flawed. And the title character embodies both extremes. With no conscience, only impulses, Lucien is capable of the most villainous alongside the most heroic of behaviors. This film is beautifully acted, powerfully conceived, thoroughly moving. With The Sorrow and the Pity, it may have been the film that made France reckon with her conscience about the Occupation, but it is so much more than that. It's towering.