A Very Long Engagement

– In 1919, Mathilde was 19 years old. Two years earlier, her fiancé Manech left for the front at the ..

Type:
Movie
Rating:
7.70 / 10
Duration:
2 Hours and 13 Minutes
Release Year:
2004
Original Name:
Un long dimanche de fiançailles
A Very Long Engagement (2004) - Also known as Un long dimanche de fiançailles

In 1919, Mathilde was 19 years old. Two years earlier, her fiancé Manech left for the front at the Somme. Like millions of others he was "killed on the field of battle." It's written in black and white on the official notice. But Mathilde refuses to believe it. If Manech had died, she would know. She hangs on to her intuition as tightly as she would onto the last thread of hope linking her to her lover. A former sergeant tells her in vain that Manech died in the no man's land of a trench named Bingo Crepescule, in the company of four other men condemned to die for self-inflicted wounds. Her path ahead is full of obstacles but Mathilde is not frightened. Anything is possible to someone who is willing to challenge fate...

A Very Long Engagement (2004) - Trailer

Release Date:

14 Jan 2005

Language:

French, German, Corsican

MPAA Content-Rating:
R – Restricted

Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian. Contains some adult material. Parents are urged to learn more about the film before taking their young children with them.

Director:

Jean-Pierre Jeunet

Writer:

Sébastien Japrisot (novel), Jean-Pierre Jeunet (story and adaptation), Guillaume Laurant (story and adaptation), Guillaume Laurant (dialogue)

Main Actors:

Audrey Tautou, Gaspard Ulliel, Dominique Pinon, Chantal Neuwirth

Plot:

Five desperate French soldiers during The Battle of the Somme shoot themselves, either by accident or with purpose, in order to be invalided back home. Having been "caught" a court-martial convenes and determines punishment to be banishment to No Man's Land with the objective of having the Germans finish them off. In the process of telling this tale each man's life is briefly explored along with their next of kin as Methilde, fiancée to one of the men, tries to determine the circumstances of her lover's death. This task is not made any easier for her due to a bout with polio as a child. Along the way she discovers the heights and depths of the human soul.

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 17 wins & 33 nominations.

Gross profit:

$6,200,000

Production:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Ratings:
Internet Movie Database:
7.7/10
Rotten Tomatoes:
78%
Metacritic:
76%