Educational Media Reviews Online

Between the opening credits, as we fly via helicopter above a canopy of tropical vegetation, and its abrupt end, La 317ème section (aka The 317th Platoon), plunges its viewers into a wartime journey.

The film takes place over several days in May 1954. While far away in Geneva, Switzerland, representatives of several countries were gathered to negotiate the future of Indochina - the characters of our story are a small unit of French and Laotian troops in retreat, trying to reach a safe outpost, but pursued by hostile enemy forces in the untenable Cambodian wilderness.

The platoon is officially led by a young Sous-lieutenant (played by Jacques Perrin, who some will recognize from a film over two decades later in 1988, Cinema Paradiso). However, it is another character, an Adjutant (played by Bruno Cremer), who has accrued the greatest amount of combat experience and thus confidently challenges and warns about various decisions, logistics, plans and pitfalls the men could face. The friendship and mutual respect that develops between these two men is just one of many examples of comradery, in contrast with the men’s bleak and challenging circumstances.

Their pilgrimage is fraught with combat, injury, crude medical attention, spoiled rations, negative interactions with villagers, high-pressure decisions, fatigue, merciless terrain, an oppressive climate, enemy propaganda, and death. At one point a character tells of his experiences in a different war, and as he tells his story, he accidentally confuses the enemy of the current conflict with the enemy of the previous war. Yet in quieter moments along the way, the soldiers also encounter the kindness and generosity of the native people. The film makes time for the audience to get to know many characters more personally, and it even incorporates moments of humor.

The film’s authenticity is due in no small part to the screenplay having been written by the same author as the novel the film is based on - who also happened to be the director of the film, Pierre Schoendoerffer. The black and white cinematography is by the celebrated Raoul Coutard, also a veteran of the Indochina War.

Originally released in the spring of 1965 in France, The 317th Platoon was not released in United States until 2018. This 2021 release by Icarus Films is also a 2K restoration. After so many decades of absence in the United States, this film is recommended as a poignant addition to a variety of curriculum, including studies of the history of French Indochina, international relations, military operations, logistical training, postcolonialism, the experience of combat, the psychology of battle – and the consequences of war on the individual mind.

The film is in French with English subtitles.

Awards:
Winner Best Screenplay, Cannes Film Festival 1965

Published and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. Anyone can use these reviews, so long as they comply with the terms of the license.