This is one of those movies that I'll probably enjoy the second time around even better than the first. It's so suspenseful, I wasn't able to relax the first time I saw it! It does have an incredibly slow and boring start, so bear with it until it gets good. Bing Crosby takes us through a flashback to his pre-war marriage to Nicole Maurey. In my opinion, there was no reason to have that entire section included in the film. As long as he tells us he was married and she died, she doesn't have to prance around the screen in an indecipherable accent singing French lullabies.
But, on to the good part of the movie. Bing Crosby is on a mission to find his son, who was smuggled out of Nazi-occupied France without documentation. Since there was no DNA testing back in 1953, when he gets a clue that his son might be in a particular orphanage, there's no way to tell for sure. Instead, Bing tries to jog the boy's memory or look for some sort of similarity that would convince him, one way or another, of the boy's parentage. These scenes, with Bing and Christian Fourcade, are tender, funny, sweet, tense, and loving. Although not initially endearing, Christian quickly worms his way into your heart, and you find yourself wondering whether he is or isn't Bing's child-and wondering whether or not it matters.
Gabrielle Dourziat, the Mother Superior in charge of the orphanage, adds another layer to this film. Not only is her character written extremely well, but her contained, hopeful, stern performance is exactly what the film calls for. She tells Bing that many parents make the same mistake when they come to her orphanage trying to find their children. They repeatedly choose the most alert, intelligent, friendly looking child with their same coloring. "Parental instinct is very often masked as conceit." In later scenes with Bing, she reveals more of the plot and her character in such a wonderful way it'll give you chills.
Trust me, I know how annoying the beginning is. Either fast-forward or hang in there until Bing gets to the orphanage. This movie is worth it.
But, on to the good part of the movie. Bing Crosby is on a mission to find his son, who was smuggled out of Nazi-occupied France without documentation. Since there was no DNA testing back in 1953, when he gets a clue that his son might be in a particular orphanage, there's no way to tell for sure. Instead, Bing tries to jog the boy's memory or look for some sort of similarity that would convince him, one way or another, of the boy's parentage. These scenes, with Bing and Christian Fourcade, are tender, funny, sweet, tense, and loving. Although not initially endearing, Christian quickly worms his way into your heart, and you find yourself wondering whether he is or isn't Bing's child-and wondering whether or not it matters.
Gabrielle Dourziat, the Mother Superior in charge of the orphanage, adds another layer to this film. Not only is her character written extremely well, but her contained, hopeful, stern performance is exactly what the film calls for. She tells Bing that many parents make the same mistake when they come to her orphanage trying to find their children. They repeatedly choose the most alert, intelligent, friendly looking child with their same coloring. "Parental instinct is very often masked as conceit." In later scenes with Bing, she reveals more of the plot and her character in such a wonderful way it'll give you chills.
Trust me, I know how annoying the beginning is. Either fast-forward or hang in there until Bing gets to the orphanage. This movie is worth it.