Les Visiteurs du Soir

Forced by the German Occupation to make "escapist" films, the director/writer team of Marcel Carné and Jacques Prévert went back to the 15th century for this rather stilted and whimsical fairy tale. Alain Cuny and Arletty play servants of the Devil disguised as minstrels. They arrive at a wedding of a baron's daughter with the intention of causing mischief. It was seen by many of the French audiences at the time as an allegory of their situation with the Devil as Hitler, played by Jules Berry with his usual impish charm. Today we can enjoy the performances and the superb art design (Georges Wakhevitch, Alexandre Trauner) and photography (Roger Hubert).