Verdun: Visions of History

Verdun: Visions of History is a 1928 French docudrama film directed by Léon Poirier. It portrays the battle of Verdun, primarily by recreating the battle on its location, but also with the use of newsreel footage and dramatic scenes. Most of the people in the film are actual French and German World War I veterans, including Marshal Philippe Pétain who portrays himself. The film has a pacifist message.

Cast

Albert Préjean as the French soldier
Jeanne Marie-Laurent as the mother
Suzanne Bianchetti as the wife
Hans Brausewetter as the German soldier
Thomy Bourdelle as the German officer
Pierre Nay as the boy
Maurice Schutz as the Marshal of the empire
Antonin Artaud as the intellectual
Daniel Mendaille as the husband
Philippe Pétain as Philippe Pétain

Other than Pétain, the film pays tribute to the officers Robert Nivelle, Charles Mangin, Ferdinand Foch and Georges Guynemer.

Release

The film premiered on 8 November 1928 with a screening at the Palais Garnier, in the presence of the French president and the German ambassador, with an original orchestra score by André Petiot. It was released in regular cinemas on 23 November 1928. In 1931, Poirier re-edited the film and added an audio track to create a sound film, which was released under the title Verdun, souvenirs d'histoire. The sound version runs at 115 minutes, while the original silent version is 151 minutes long. Most prints of the film were destroyed during World War II. A good print was discovered in Moscow 50 years later and was restored by the Cinémathèque de Toulouse in 2006.