(The Unvanquished)
Directed by Alain Cavalier
98 minutes
In French with English subtitles   

This is an existentialist flick with a deep melancholic mood starring Alain Delon as Thomas, an ex-soldier who gets involved in the Organisation de l'armée secrète, a Gladio-like right-wing organization based in France. This Secret army really existed and committed acts of terrorism—arson, assassinations and bombings (also of cinemas). The OAS fought against Algeria's independence struggle, and for the continuation of French colonial rule. Thomas is stuck in Algeria and needs money to return to Europe and see his kid, so he takes a job offered to him by the OAS to kidnap a leftist female lawyer who is defending two Algerian clients. After holding her captive for a few days Thomas has a glimmer of awareness that life isn't just about making money.… and the story takes off from there. The film was controversial when it came out, and it was meant to be. 

L'insoumis is based on a true story—the kidnapping of communist lawyer Mireille Szatan-Glaymann. When the movie came out she immediately took the producers to court and won. The movie was then pulled from distribution and heavily censored, to the point the story no longer made any sense. Unfortunately Alain Delon was not only acting... he was also the co-producer, and when the film was chopped to pieces by the government he lost a lot of money. But it was a film he felt strongly about and believed in, and turned in one of his best performances. Director Alain Cavalier was a minor member of the French New Wave, and after the censorship of his movie he said "I felt as if they had torn off my ear and gouged out my eyes”. 

This haunting flick is a beautiful mix of different qualities—it's a noir thriller but it is also relaxed and meditative. It is a story of love, but a fatal one that is deeply poignant. The actors, the concept, the moody black-and-white cinematography and music score all fuse together perfectly. Delon gives a cutting-edge performance that is tender and humane, but never overly sentimental... and the female lead is unforgettable—Italian actress Lea Massari, who was the mother figure in Louis Malle’s Murmur of the Heart.

Like I said, this is one of the more obscure Alain Delon films, made when he was young and frisky. The unusually politically-charged twist on the noir theme, along with the heavy censorship the movie went through, meant this film has been almost totally forgotten. It's about time to dig it up and toss it on the screen again! Today most people who know this movie don't even know why—but any Brit music fan out there will instantly recognize an image  of Alain Delon from this film—used by The Smiths for their album The Queen is Dead.

Well, the queen (Delon) has indeed finally died.

A very rare screening of this long forgotten treasure.