C/-\R\/E |-|ER N@/\/\E \/\/!T|-| PR!|)E 9

After Violette Szabo's (Virginia McKenna) French husband is killed in North Africa during World War II, she is amazed to find herself seconded to the British secret service, and agrees to undertake resistance work in France. Subjected to rigorous training, she is put through a rite of passage in which she has to learn to fight and think like a man. She is parachuted into enemy territory and proves herself a valuable and resourceful agent. After her mission to Rouen, Vi meets up with her control, Tony (Paul Scofield), in Paris and reports on her difficulties during the mission. Its success is emphasised when Tony tells her that its aim - the destruction of the viaduct - was achieved. But this is not just a professional meeting; Tony makes his love for her clear.

On a second mission, Vi is captured when her ammunition runs out. The German interrogator reminds her: 'what will become of your child if you die?', before offering her new clothes and fun, 'you're young, you're attractive and you're in Paris.' Violette slaps him. After physical torture, memories of her husband Etienne prove an even greater temptation. The final scenes of the film, in which Vi is tortured, taken to a prison camp and finally shot are punctuated by close-ups of her translucent skin, her cheekbones sharp and her fair hair pushed away to reveal her drawn features. Tanya, dressed in the dress bought for her in Paris, goes to collect the George Cross that the state has bestowed on her dead mother. The repetition of a special poem and the final image of children playing in the street give a hopeful resonance to Violette's sacrifice.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• FILM