''Atlantic Wall'' (french: Le Mur de l'Atlantique, it, Un elmetto pieno di... fifa) is a 1970 French-Italian war-comedy film written and directed by

Marcel Camus Marcel may refer to: People * Marcel (given name), people with the given name Marcel * Marcel (footballer, born August 1981), Marcel Silva Andrade, Brazilian midfielder * Marcel (footballer, born November 1981), Marcel Augusto Ortolan, Brazilian s ...

and starring

Bourvil André Robert Raimbourg (; 27 July 1917 – 23 September 1970), better known as André Bourvil (), and mononymously as Bourvil, was a French actor and singer best known for his roles in comedy films, most notably in his collaboration with Louis ...

and

Peter McEnery Peter Robert McEnery (born 21 February 1940) is a retired English stage and film actor. Early life McEnery was born in Walsall, Staffordshire, to Charles and Ada Mary (née Brinson) McEnery. He was educated at Ellesmere College, Shropshire. H ...

. It was Bourvil's last film.

Plot

The story is set during the Second World War, under the occupation of France, and shortly before the

Battle of Normandy Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norma ...

. Léon Duchemin is a peaceful restaurateur whose wife left him twenty years earlier. He lived in the company of his eccentric sister Maria, and his

young adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...

daughter Juliette. His clients represent the whole of society in the village, ranging from

Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel () (15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944) was a German field marshal during World War II. Popularly known as the Desert Fox (, ), he served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of Nazi Germany, as well as servi ...

's driver, to resistance fighters and black market traffickers. One evening, during an air raid, Jeff, a British aviator whose plane was shot down, almost falls into Juliette's room. The next day, Leon hangs out with Charlus, the craftsman responsible for repainting his storefront. Leon is misidentified as the painter in question and is taken to the Kommandantur, where they have a similar job to offer him. Leon inadvertently carries a secret plan concerning the fortifications of the

Atlantic Wall The Atlantic Wall (german: link=no, Atlantikwall) was an extensive system of coastal defences and fortifications built by Nazi Germany between 1942 and 1944 along the coast of continental Europe and Scandinavia as a defence against an anticip ...

. Having made the acquaintance of Jeff who understands the interest of the discovery made by Leon, the latter is therefore obliged to join the

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

. The resistance takes the two men to England. Leon then finds himself in a British army training camp, under the orders of Jeff himself. He does not yet know that his daughter Juliette is pregnant and that the aviator will become his son-in-law.

Cast

as Léon Duchemin *

as Jeff *

Sophie Desmarets Sophie Desmarets (1922–2012) was a French film actress.Davis p.145 Selected filmography * ''Battement de coeur'' (1940) - (uncredited) * ''Premier rendez-vous'' (1941) - Henriette Lefranc * ''L'homme qui joue avec le feu'' (1942) - Gabrielle * ...

as Maria Duchemin * Jean Poiret as Armand * Reinhardt Kolldehoff as Lt. Heinrich Jakobus Steinbichler aka Totor * Sara Franchetti as Juliette Duchemin *

Pino Caruso Giuseppe Caruso (12 October 1934 – 7 March 2019), best known as Pino Caruso, was an Italian actor, author and television personality. Life and career Caruso was born in Palermo, Sicily and debuted as dramatic stage actor in his home town in ...

as Lt. Friedrich *

Terry-Thomas Terry-Thomas (born Thomas Terry Hoar Stevens; 10 July 19118 January 1990) was an English character actor and comedian who became internationally known through his films during the 1950s and 1960s. He often portrayed disreputable members of th ...

as Comm. Perry * Jean-Pierre Zola as Colonel Muller *

Georges Staquet Georges Staquet (1932, in Bruille-lez-Marchiennes – 2011) was a French actor. Partial filmography * ''The Day and the Hour'' (1963) - L'aubergiste (uncredited) * '' Bande à part'' (1964) - Legionary * ''Marie Soleil'' (1964) * '' Pierrot l ...

as Hippolyte * Jacques Préboist as Ernest *

Johannes Eppler Johannes Eppler (1914–1999), also known as Hans Eppler, John Eppler, and Hussein Gaafer, was a World War II Abwehr spy, a German who had been raised in Egypt by his Egyptian stepfather. One of Rommel's spies during the North African campaign ...

Erwin Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel () (15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944) was a German field marshal during World War II. Popularly known as the Desert Fox (, ), he served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of Nazi Germany, as well as servi ...

Annabel Leventon Annabel Leventon (born 20 April 1942 in Hertfordshire, England) is an English actress who has acted in various roles on stage and television. While reading English at the University of Oxford she made several appearances at the Oxford Playhouse ...

as Sybil *

Jackie Sardou Jackie Sardou (7 April 1919 – 2 April 1998) was a French actress. Personal life She was born Jacqueline Labbé in Paris, and married Fernand Sardou, a singer. She was the mother of singer Michel Sardou; and grandmother of author Romain Sardou ...

as Angèle Charlus *

William Mervyn William Mervyn Pickwoad (3 January 1912 – 6 August 1976) was an English actor best known for his portrayal of the bishop in the clerical comedy ''All Gas and Gaiters'', the old gentleman in ''The Railway Children'' and Inspector Charles Rose i ...

as Jeff's Father *

Jess Hahn Jesse Beryle Hahn (October 29, 1921June 29, 1998) was an American- French character actor who mostly starred in French films. Biography After serving with the Marines in the Second World War, he moved to France in 1949 and took French citi ...

as British Colonel * Patrick Préjean as British Officer *

Michel Robin Michel Robin (13 November 1930 – 18 November 2020) was a French film, stage, and television actor. A sociétaire of the Comédie-Française since 1996, he also appeared in 120 films from 1966 to 2018. He won several awards for his acting, ...

as The Shoemaker *

Jacques Balutin Jacques Balutin is a French actor.Norman Mitchell Norman Mitchell Driver (27 August 1918 – 19 March 2001), known professionally as Norman Mitchell, was an English television, stage and film actor. Born in Sheffield, West Riding of Yorkshire, his father was a mining engineer and his mother a ...

as First Cop * Stephen Yardley as Second Cop

Reception

The film was the second most popular film in France in 1970, after '' The Gendarme Takes Off''.

References

External links

* French war comedy films Italian war comedy films 1970s war comedy films Films directed by Marcel Camus 1970 comedy films 1970 films French World War II films Italian World War II films Films scored by Claude Bolling Films set in France Cultural depictions of Erwin Rommel 1970s French-language films 1970s French films 1970s Italian films {{1970s-Italy-film-stub