Jean-Pierre Melville's The Silence of the Sea (Le Silence de la Mer) takes place in a small town in occupied France in 1941, where Werner Von Ebrennac, a German officer, is billeted in the house of a bourgeois French Family. An older man and his niece are the only other ones living in the household but they refuse to speak to the German Officer. Every evening Werner Von Ebrennac arrives back at the house, warms himself by the fire, and talks about his country, its culture, and his idealistic perceptions of what the relationship between Germany and France should be. One day, Werner Von Ebrennac finally gets the chance to visit Paris, where he sees his ideals shattered, discovering the dark truth as to the extreme means which his military and government are going through to erase France's culture and history. Melville's debut feature, The Silence of the Sea is a simple yet deeply effective story which exhibits the absurdness and tragedy of war. With most of the film being set in the living room of this French household, The Silence of the Seas has a very quiet sense of horror that is palpable, capturing how the aunt and uncle have no control, even in their own home, forced to simply let Werner Von Ebrennac do as he pleases in their household, having possession over them and their things, much like Germany has over France as a whole. These two French characters, the uncle and niece, have barely any spoken dialogue throughout the entire film, with Melville using internal monologue to offer up insights into the psyche of these characters who are powerless to do anything but watch Werner Von Ebrennac as he waxes poetic about French culture and the German way of life. Melville's film isn't flashy but it's certainly assured in its approach, having great use of lighting and silhouette in these living room sequences that add tension to this simplistic story. Howard Vernon as Werner Von Ebrennac is fantastic, bringing an assured arrogance to his performance that is intimidating, transfixing, and ultimately empathetic, as the film presents a cultured man who is immensely troubled by the destruction of so much significant and important French culture by the end of the film. The Silence of the Sea is a film that presents the conflict between one's conscience and their ideology, as we see Werner Von Ebrennac come face-to-face with his own beliefs and come to understand how senseless culture, human emotion, and existence are made by war. Simple, taut, and ultimately profound, Jean-Pierre Melville's The Silence of the Sea is a impressive debut feature and important film about the destructive nature of war, particularly on culture.
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June 2023
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