''Malabar Princess'' is a 2004 French film directed by Gilles Legrand. The film is about a young boy called Tom, who is sent to live with his grandfather in the

French Alps The French Alps are the portions of the Alps mountain range that stand within France, located in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions. While some of the ranges of the French Alps are entirely in France, others, such as ...

after his mother disappeared during an excursion with her husband, Pierre, in the French Alps. He becomes friends with Benoît, a boy about his age. While searching for Tom's mother they come across the remains of a plane that had crashed during the 1950s.

Plot

Tom is eight and dyslexic, has been living near Mont Blanc with his maternal grandfather, a

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

conductor. He becomes friends with Benoît, and the two search for the remains of the Malabar Princess, an

Air India Air India is the flag carrier airline of India, headquartered at New Delhi. It is owned by Talace Private Limited, a Special-Purpose Vehicle (SPV) of Tata Sons, after Air India Limited's former owner, the Government of India, completed the ...

plane that crashed in 1950.

Production

The film was shot on location at

Mont Blanc Mont Blanc (french: Mont Blanc ; it, Monte Bianco , both meaning "white mountain") is the highest mountain in the Alps and Western Europe, rising above sea level. It is the second-most prominent mountain in Europe, after Mount Elbrus, and ...

in France. The ''Malabar Princess'' disaster actually occurred on 3 November 1950. It was Flight 245, a

Lockheed Constellation The Lockheed Constellation ("Connie") is a propeller-driven, four-engined airliner built by Lockheed Corporation starting in 1943. The Constellation series was the first pressurized-cabin civil airliner series to go into widespread use. Its press ...

aircraft of

, which had crashed at 4,700 meters above sea level. One of the engines of the wreckage was found on 15 September 1989 on the surface of the Glacier des Bossons, 1,900 m above sea level. A second engine was found on 22 September 2008 at 2,000 m above sea level on the same glacier.

Cast

Jacques Villeret Jacques Villeret (; 6 February 1951 – 28 January 2005) was a French actor, best known internationally for his role as François Pignon in the comedy ''Le Dîner de Cons''. During his career, he earned many awards including the prestigious ...

as Gaspard *

Michèle Laroque Michèle Laroque (; born 15 June 1960) is a French actress, comedian, humorist, producer and screenwriter. Early life Michèle Laroque was born in Nice in the department of Alpes-Maritimes. She is the daughter of Romanian dancer and violinis ...

as Valentine *

Claude Brasseur Claude Brasseur (15 June 1936 – 22 December 2020) was a French actor. Life and career Claude Brasseur was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine as Claude Pierre Espinasse, the son of actor Pierre Brasseur and actress Odette Joyeux. He was the godson of E ...

as Robert * Jules Angelo Bigarnet as Tom * Clovis Cornillac as Pierre *

Urbain Cancelier Urbain Cancelier (born 2 August 1959) is a French comedian and actor, primarily known for his collaborations with French film director Jean-Pierre Jeunet, and for playing Collignon in '' Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain''. Theater Filmogra ...

as Gaston *

Fabienne Chaudat Fabienne Chaudat (born 1 July 1959) is a French film and theatrical actress. Career Fabienne Chaudat attended the and then Jean-Laurent Cochet Jean-Laurent Cochet (28 January 1935 – 7 April 2020) was a French director and actor. Biograph ...

as Odette * Damien Jouillerot as Benoît * George Claisse as Guardian of the Sanctuary * Roland Marchisio as The jeweler * Patrick Ligardes as Constable Petit * Franck Adrien as Constable Chopper

References

External links

* {{Portal bar, Film 2004 films 2000s French-language films French drama films French aviation films 2004 drama films Films directed by Gilles Legrand 2000s French films