Genre: Drama/Historical
Director: Morten Tyldum
Writer: Mo Buck
Cast: Gary Oldman, Marin Cotillard, Jean Dujardin, Timothee Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Mark Strong, Woody Harrelson, Charles Dance
Plot: Several tanks are advancing one behind the other on a dirt road. They pass near a farm, where its occupants are scared and run inside. They are now into a city. The column of tanks continues its way to their its final destination, the Arc of Triumph. The Nazis just started to occupy the entirety of the French territory. The tanks all park on the Champs-Élysées. There's a small crowd of local residents there to watch the German occupants arrive. Married couple Marianne (Marion Cotillard) and Louis Jallet (Jean Dujardin) are amongst them. They invited their son, Napoleon (Timothée Chalamet) too. They notice a man getting out of Panzer immobilized right under the Arc. There's two other men coming with him the small podium installed for the occasion. General Steffan Hegenhauser (Gary Oldman) greets the crowd and introduces himself. He introduces his two acolytes Colonel Bernhardt Reus (Mark Strong) and Albert Hoffman (Charles Dance) A man from the crowd gets over the fence and starts running towards the German. He's followed by several men, including the Jallet's neighbour, Martin Pinault (Woody Harrelson). A man on a nearby rooftop screams LA RÉSISTANCE and drops a banner. Some men who jumped the fence are shot and others, including Pinault, are captured. After the revolt is under control, General Hegenhauser announces that no one is allowed in the streets at night and will be shot immediately.
The Jallet are back home and they discuss what they just witnessed. Marianne goes to see her sister who lives in the apartment over the Jallet's. She knocks on the door and she doesn't answer. She goes back to her husband and son. She says that what she witnessed was incredible and she wished she had done the same. Louis replies that it's a stupid, crazy idea that will only get them killed. Napoléon excuses himself and he goes in his room.
Martin Pinault is attached by his wrists to a pole and Bernhardt Reus is in front of him. He hits him the stomach and Pinault loses his breath. He starts asking him if he wants to rat out his friends in their so-called Resistance and he refuses. Bernhardt takes out a knife and starts cutting Pinault's finger. His screams alerted Albert Hoffman in the other room and he runs to see if there's problem. He sees Reus working on Pinault to get him to rat out his friends from the Resistance and he insists it's a good idea, but they shouldn't harm him. Hoffman cuts Pinault free and ties him to a chair instead. They put a rag in his mouth and they let him alone from the time being, while blood pours on the floor from his finger.
Napoleon is sitting in his room at night. He gets out by the window and climbs to his aunt's apartment. He likes to go there when he knows she's not home, as it allows him some alone time. He gets in and starts looking around her apartment. He realises that he doesn't really know this woman, despite her being his aunt and she lives right above them. He opens her closet and he finds a peculiar flag, lying on the floor. He picks it up and places it on her bed. He notices it's the same flag he saw at the Resistance uprising against the Germans earlier today. He stares at the flag and he's surprised by hsi aunt, Suzanne Morris (Gwyneth Paltrow). She tries to justify herself, but Napoleon doesn't want to hear anything. He wants in. He wants to join the Resistance. She declines and says that there's no arguing. He asks her how she joined the movement and she sits on the bed with him.
Steffan Hegenhauser just got back to the German headquarters in downtown Paris. He asks people where his two acolytes are. People are afraid of Hegenhauser, his stature and way of talking intimidates most people. He gets in Reus and Hoffman's room and orders them to get up. They decline and Hegenhauser starts screaming at them. Some people arrive to say what's going on and he sends them away. The two colonels get up and they follow their superior. He gets them inside another room and makes them sit on separate chairs while he stays up. He starts lecturing them on how to treat their enemies. He goes on a rant about why they shouldn't hurt anybody while they're captive. They already announced that Pinault will be executed tomorrow afternoon and he doesn't want them to kill Pinault before the execution. He talks really loud and all the other people present at the headquarters are listening to him. He gets out of the room and asks people why they're all listening to him. They all get away and he enters Pinault's room. He finds him unconscious and wakes him up brutally.
Suzanne went downstairs and told her sister and her brother-in-law about Napoleon's desire. Louis vehemently denies, but Marianne agrees. She says she wants in too. Louis starts yelling louder and louder to express his disagreement. They hear someone knock at the door. Napoleon opens the door and a German soldier is standing there, telling them that he could hear them from the street and asks them what's the problem. Suzanne and her sister start exchaning in French about joining the movement. Louis tells them to shut and moves from the doorway. Lying on the table is the Resistance's flag. The soldier sees it and asks them not to move. He grabs his gun and he's attacked by Marianne with a frying pan.
Hegenhauser unties Pinault and starts chatting with him. He asks him why he did what he did. He answers that he doesn't want foreigners to take over his city. Hegenhauser says he doesn't want any scum like him on Earth, but there's nothing he can do about it, that's just the way it is. He asks him if the Resistance is planning another attack on German soldiers. He says that he will never tell them. Hegenhauser, known for his short temper starts yelling at Pinault, pressuring him to reveal crucial infos. He repeatedly swears that he will not tell them while Hegenhauser screams at him. During this time, we see the Jallet's and Suzanne carrying the German soldier's body in the sewers. They run down in the sewers and follow Suzanne. They reach a dark corner and they climb up to the surface. They enter the first building on the right, in a small alley and find themselves in the local Resistance headquarters. They drop the body and Suzanne gets everyone's attention. She says that they will attack tomorrow. The pick up intercepted German grenades and guns. Pinault still denies knowing anything and Hegenhauser doesn't believe him. He slaps Pinault again and again, before leaving, exhausted.
The following morning, masses are walking down the streets to the Arc of Triumph, where Pinault is scheduled to get executed. The Germans doubled the number of soldiers present to try to avoid another attack. Colonel Bernhardt Reus is in charge of security and takes his job really seriously. Colonel Hoffman is tasked to supervise the event. He greets several German officials and tells Reus yet again that he needs to do a good job, or he's in big trouble. General Hegenhauser gets on the stage and starts addressing the crowd, to some boos. The crowd seems agitated and Reus throws a smoke grenade in the crowd to calm them down. They bring Pinault up on the stage and the crowd gets even more agitated. Reus is on the verge of cracking up and Hoffman reassures him from behind. Pinault gets on his knees ready to get executed. Hegenhauser asks him if he has any last words and he screams LA RÉSISTANCE! A flag drops from a building and people start throwing grenades to the Germans from thtat same rooftop. The Germans use a Panzer to destroy the building, killing several Resistance members. Hegenhauser screams orders to his subordinates. He gets his gun and kills Pinault. Marianne, Louis and Napoleon are hiding in the sewers, under the Arc of Triumph, ready to strike. Suzanne tells them to go and they get out with other Resistance members right in the middle of the Germans. They throw their grenades and gun down the Germans. Reus is shot by Louis, while Hoffman runs away. A Panzer arrives and they get down in the sewers again. Napoleon wasn't able to get down and gets killed by the Germans. Hegenhauser smiles as his army is destroying the French people.
Before the credits start rolling, the battle continues with no sound, as the French resistants are destroyed by German forces. Hegenhauser smiles at the film ends. The screen fades to black. In white letters, a text appears on the screen : This work of fiction brutally depicts the desperation some French people had when the Germans invaded. The French Resistance often participated in guerillas like this one to try to liberate their country. Their noble efforts are not what liberated France from the Germans, but several hundreds of people, including ordinary citizens died fighting for their cause. Their story is often forgotten, but they helped the war effort and they should not be forgotten.
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