There is a scene in the movie where the main characters Madame Quentin, Francois Quentin and Julien Quentin is sitting at a restaurant. I'm from Scandinavia and I saw it in french without subtitles, can anyone please tell me about what the conversation was about and M. Meyers situation?
Kind regards
(Spoiler coming)
The conversation is small talk...first Ms. Quentin asks Julien about his friend...gets his name wrong and is corrected. She then says how dreadful it was that Julien had been left out after the Treasure Hunt without adult supervision...Julien says it was not a problem...besides he (Bonnet) was with him....she says, oh it was you..how nice.
Meanwhile a couple of French collaborators come into the restaurant and start bothering Mayer. They ask him for his papers...reluctantly he shows it to them and they discover he is a jew and start threatening him for violating the no jews allowed sign.
Meanwhile Ms. Quentin makes a remark that she sees nothing wrong with Mr. Mayer, he looks like quite a proper gentleman. She remarks something to the effect she has nothing against Jews mind you...Julien asks if one of the relatives is Jewish...Meanwhile the other brother makes a remark and the other collaborator comes over to him saying they are serving France.
At this point one of the diners yells out, send the Jews to Stalingrad. The German officer in the next table gets up and tells the collaborators to get out....they give him a long look and then tell Mayer they will meet again. The German officer then bows to Ms. Quentin and says, "voila." whereupon she offers you see, they're not all bad.
Au Revoir Les Enfants is my favorite movie of all time.
The restaurant scene is a key scene in the movie, which makes it both sad and noble.
The French gendarmes are subservient to the Germans and are attempting to throw a polite elderly gentleman from the restaurant because he is Jewish.
Julien's brother, Francois, who is about 17 in the movie, stands up to the French gendarmes and calls one of them, "a collaborator" to his face.
That was sheer courage on his part.
Jean hardly speaks at the dinner except for saying a yes or a No.
Jean is terrified of the German Nazi officers that are sitting on the next table while at the same time regains the long missed feeling of being a part of a family.
Hello from the Netherlands,
Roberto
I never understood how come there were double standards for Jews: some were sent to concentration camps (like Bonnett), while other were "just" forbidden entrance in some restaurants (like the old man)?
And as for your comment robertodelamar, I would have to disagree about the "polite elderly gentleman" part. From the very beginning of the restaurant scene, before it was even revealed he was a Jew, I found him not so likable, mainly because when the waiter asked him how he liked his meal, he replied: "It was tolerable." in a very snobbish, conceited manner. I find such behavior in any person deplorable, especially when someone gives himself too much importance like that man did. Sure, I felt sorry for him when the policeman started yelling at him, but that didn't make him any nicer of a gentleman to me. His behavior made me think of him as a spoiled rich brat and I don't care what religion he has.
There's another question: If Jews were banned from most places, and Jew-owned businesses were closed down, that surely would reflect itself on their economy and living standard. How come this elderly Jewish man could eat out in a posh restaurant (where, as we understand from the scene, he is a regular guest) wearing a very stylish and presumably expensive suit????
And I have to disagree with your description of the elderly man's comment as "snobbish" and "conceited." He merely said "The rabbit was tolerable," which I'm sure was the best thing that could have been said about it. This was a high quality restaurant which, because of food shortages, was reduced to serving only one item - rabbit prepared in margarine. Even Julien's mother (who was clearly hoping for fish) had a "well, if that's all you have" attitude when she learned that rabbit was the only item on the menu.
And I thought the old man made his comment to the waiter in a friendly manner, as though he were saying "everything considered, I have no complaints." I don't think the waiter would have defended him to the Milice if he'd been either "snobbish" or "conceited."
As for what he was doing in the reastaurant - well, if you had the food coupons, you could eat at the restaurant. And, as confirmed by the waiter, the old man had been a regular there for years.
Vichy France had its peculiarities as far as its "minorities" were concerned - a pair of black politicians even made their way into Petain's government for a short time. Of all the occupied territories, France was a favorite of the Germans, and their attitude was often (though not always) more relaxed when they found themselves there - it depended on the individual soldier or official. Generally speaking, though, the elderly Jewish population was less of a target than the younger Jewish generation. If they had a choice between the two, they preferred to kill those who had a long life ahead of them (and who might produce new generations) to those who didn't have much time left.
I agree with you about the elderly gentleman - however it really doesn't matter. The point of the scene had to do with the antisemitism, and I think it was strengthened by the fact that the man wasn't entirely amiable (well okay, that's not really a "fact" but whatever), because it puts things into perspective, to me anyway. Yes, he seemed snobbish, I agree, but he's still human and he's still persecuted unjustly. Murph24: the waiter might have believed so too - I don't know that people with principles would only defend the Jewish people they got along with well and not the ones they considered snobbish or conceited.
As for the Jewish man appearing well-off economically, well, afaik there were quite a number of Jewish people doing well. I think this was the main reason there was so much antagony towards them (but don't take my word for it, I'm not confident I'm right here). At one point when Julien asks his brother what people have against Jews (about 47 minutes into the movie), besides "they crucified Jesus" his brother mentions "the fact they're smarter than us".
My vote history: http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=13037287
Murph24: the waiter might have believed so too - I don't know that people with principles would only defend the Jewish people they got along with well and not the ones they considered snobbish or conceited.
I know that you didn't see the elderly gentleman that way, and that's fair. Mind you, I didn't particularly dislike him either, but I personally did see a certain amount of snobbishness in him.
What you said about the waiter not caring that the man was Jewish was about my point - I think he didn't believe that the French collaborators were justified in confronting the man on this point, regardless of what he may otherwise have thought about the man (which I don't presume to know).
Also, I don't actually "find fault" with the elderly gentleman - obviously you're right that the real creeps are the people you mentioned, I agree. I also don't care that some of them are "decent" so much, as you said, they're still fighting for Hitler. In the same manner, I don't care if some of the Jewish people that are being harassed might not be agreeable (whether you think that applied to the man in this scene or not), they're still unjustly persecuted. That was all that I was saying, really. Sorry if I implied that I think the elderly gentleman was at fault in any way, and the "real creeps" you mentioned weren't, I definitely don't think that was the case.
My vote history: http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=13037287
I wonder if the English subtitles are a little off in this scene. Mind you, my French is rudimentary at best, but I could swear the elderly gentleman describes the rabbit as "acceptable" and not (as the subtitles indicate) "tolerable." There's a subtle difference between the words; "acceptable" can mean "satisfactory" and "agreeable," while "tolerable" suggests something is "passable" at best. And coupled with the gentleman's genial manner, "acceptable" has a far more positive connotation.
Personally, I just don't see the word "snobbish" as an accurate description of the guy. If anything, I see him the same way that I see Julien's mother - someone who's simply accustomed to the finer things in life. The word "snobbish" implies that a person is looking down on everyone and everything, and I just don't see that quality in him. Look at the way the waiter lights his cigarette, and the way the two chat - I get the feeling there's mutual respect between them.
And speaking of Julien's mother - I don't know if anyone else has mentioned it, but Madame Quentin is beautiful (Francine Racette, the actress who plays her, is married to actor Donald Sutherland in real life). I also like Stanislas Carré de Malbergas as Julien's brother; he's irreverent, compassionate, and - with a single word to the hated Milice, - he displays real guts.
Actually, now that I look back at the scene I think you're right, actually. He seems fairly agreeable. I think snobbish is too strong a word, although I do still see something a little like that. At any rate, you're right - he said "acceptable" and though that's only a very subtle distinction, it is one nonetheless. I don't know if I would go so far as to say there's a mutual respect between this man and the waiter, I think we don't get enough information to say quite that, but at the very least there doesn't seem to be any animosity.
But I don't think it's very important anyway, for reasons I've stated in my above posts.
I agree about Stanislas Carré de Malbergas :)
My vote history: http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=13037287
even if the elderly jewish gentleman did offer his honest opinion to the waiter instead of a polite opinion...times were different then. nowadays people are deferential to waitstaff. there's a greater emphasis on tipping and regarding them not as servants, but as working stiffs equal to us.
back in the day, it was a sign of class to be above a lowly waiter...doesn't make it right, and thank G-d we have evolved since then, but that was how it was done. irregardless of religion.
the gentleman wouldn't have known to behave differently, and the waiter wouldn't have known to expect it.
I think that when M. Meyer replied that the meal was tolerable it was a reflection on the miserable food that was available in wartime France, and not on the cooking. In the documentary film 'Le Chagrin et le pite' a farmer who had joined the resistance stated that he did so because the Germans were taking all the food, livestock and produce leaving the French with starvation rations.
M. Meyer was quite likely a business man of means who had lived in the area all his life and was well known and respected. Refugees from the east were more likely to be rounded up and deported, although eventually French Jews were persecuted and sent to concentration camps.
We are seeing the events through the eyes of the young boy, who does not understand what is happening around him.
It might be worth mentioning that rabbit is not a kosher food. So, just like pork, jews aren't supposed to eat it.
--
What does Keanu think of this? : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLpP7TDlCXE
the diner actually says send all the jews to moscow not stalingrad.
shareI didn't get that part. Mr. Mayer seemed to smile when the lady said send the Jews to Moscow. Is it because the Germans were losing the war on the Eastern Front? If somebody could explain it, I would appreciate it. Thanks.
shareThe phrase about sending the Jewis back to Moscow was because of the very close association between Judaism and Bolshewism that was prevalent these days.
share[deleted]
If the Jewish people were taken away from the school...why was the Jewish man in the restaurant not taken too? NOT that ANYone should have been taken away...but what was the difference to the germans? At the school the Jews hid their identity...and literally hid in the attic... but the man in the restaurant was freely walking around with Jewish papers.
[deleted]
Probably because the Jewish man in the restaurant was a French citizen and Bonnet wasn't. It was mostly foreign Jews which were deported.
Also, I seen to remember the Germans in the restaurant were Wehrmacht, the regular German army, not Gestapo, the hateful outfit tasked with that sort of "duties".
Starline,
You are making an important point.
Let me explain the reason:
Of the 300,000 Jews living in France at the start of the Nazi invasion (1940), about 40,000 were recent fugitives from other European countries such as Germany, Italy, Romania etc.
In 1942, the French government had agreed to deport all the non-French Jews living in France to Auschwitz, but had, initially, resisted from deporting Jews with French nationality. Thus, all foreign Jews were declared illegal in France and most were eventualy deported and killed.
This explains why Jean would be immediately deported as a Jewish foreigner, while the old Jewish man with a French nationality would not be (yet).
By 1943, when most foreign Jews had been deported from France, the French government had decided to begin also deporting French Jews to death camps.
About 25,000 Jewish children like Jean were deported from France and killed.
The children that would survive the train transportation would be murdered on the first day of their arrival to the camp or on the following day.
About 76,000 Jews in total were deported to the death camps from France.
Only about 2,500 survived.
In the Netherlands, (where I live), the laws were much worse.
All Jews, local and foreign, were designated for deportations by the government.
Thus, Anne Frank and her family, who were Jewish refugees from Germany were deported along with Jews with Dutch nationality.
90% of Jews living in the Netherlands were deported and killed.
Thank you for taking the time to type out this information. Stunning.
shareNotice how the old bloke is sitting alone in a quite crowded restaurant? Notice how the waiter waits on him just like anyone else? A subtle sign of solidarity in the face of ostracism. When the Milice bastards start strutting, some of the bourgeois bastards give them the bird and a few back them up, yet all fall silent when the boche bastard puts the Milice in his place. It's all sublty done to show how principle, opportunism and prejudice coexist. The Milice are the baddies because they have a go at a middle-class bloke for being Jewish rather than a class enemy, the other class enemies side with authority (however illigitimate) as they always do and the national enemy, the middle-class German uses his authority to pose to the French babe by putting the petty bourgeois collabo in his place.
Fook the lot of them, except the working class-waiter.
Marlon, Claudia and Dimby the cats 1989-2005, 2007 and 2010.
Notice that the scene is repeated when the lads are grassed at the school?
Marlon, Claudia and Dimby the cats 1989-2005, 2007 and 2010.
One of my favorite scenes, Note the red pin on the elderly gentleman's coat lapel in the restaurant scene. That means he is a member of the Legion of Honor, France's highest decoration. So likely he was a distinguished academic, soldier (in WWI) or other patriot who gave to France. I noticed that little red dot immediately amidst the black and gray and blue tones in this beautifully shot scene. It showcases how France was torn between its democratic inclusive traditions and its WWII anti Semitic and collaborationist tendencies.
shareForeign-born Jews were the first to be deported. Meyer, the elderly Jew in the restaurant, is presumably French-born. I read somewhere that the average adult calorie intake among the civilian population per day was about 1,300 in occupied France, a lot of people had malnutrition and there were some deaths from starvation, especially among the elderly. The people in the restaurant are France's upper crust (even Meyer has the Legion of Honour) and they are feeling the pinch a little bit, so "acceptable" rabbit is on the menu. Even the Master Race (the German officers who appear to be Luftwaffe) are probably not eating and drinking as well as a couple of years earlier.
"Chicken soup - with a *beep* straw."