Has anybody seen this film starring Sophie Marceau or even heard of it? Is it any good? Based on true events(?). Thanks, Gage. Amazon.co.uk: Female Agents [Blu-Ray] [Blu-ray] [2008]: Sophie Marceau, Deborah Francois, Julie Depardieu, Marie Gillian, Maya Sansa, Jean-Paul Salome: DVD
Has anybody seen this film starring Sophie Marceau or even heard of it? Is it any good? Based on true events(?). Thanks, Gage. Amazon.co.uk: Female Agents [Blu-Ray] [Blu-ray] [2008]: Sophie Marceau, Deborah Francois, Julie Depardieu, Marie Gillian, Maya Sansa, Jean-Paul Salome: DVD Saw it at the cinema a copy of month back , it a good film & it meant to be true
Found the offical site for it and the trailer looks quite good. I think the film is subtitled thoughout. Female Agents - On DVD October 6
I enjoyed this film. It's really a traditional action war film like Where Eagles Dare or the Guns of Navarone, with the twist that the action heroes are female. That wasn't an issue for me but it might be for somebody who expected something different. It's true in that SOE employed many female agents and Sophie Marceau's character is based on one of them. However, I think that the actual story is fiction; certainly, there are a couple of plot holes that mean it couldn't have happened that way.
I enjoyed this film. It's really a traditional action war film like Where Eagles Dare or the Guns of Navarone, with the twist that the action heroes are female. That wasn't an issue for me but it might be for somebody who expected something different. It's true in that SOE employed many female agents and Sophie Marceau's character is based on one of them. However, I think that the actual story is fiction; certainly, there are a couple of plot holes that mean it couldn't have happened that way. This must be a Charlotte Gray character.I have never heard of these names.I may be wrong but I do not think so. Why can't those people who make such films make them and portray a real character.Off the cuff, I can think of only two who portrayed real people.
Supposedly Sophie Marceau's character, Louise Desfontaines, is based on a real SOE agent called Lise Villameur. However, the plot bears no relationship to any incident in her career. The first link below is to her Times obituary and the second to an entry from the IMDB. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article822813.ece IMDb :: Boards :: Femmes de l'ombre, Les (2008) :: Based On True Story???????? As I said above, it should be regarded as an action movie in the mould of Where Eagles Dare and The Guns of Navarone but unfortunately the marketing people have suggested that it's true because it's true that SOE employed female agents.
Lise Villameur was the sister of one of the best SOE agents in the south west, namely Claude de Baissac(David) who Buckmaster described as "the most difficult of all my officers without exception".However he was particularly good at his job and suffered no fool gladly. As Lise de Baissac (Odile), Mme Villameur, serving as a FANY was dropped into France on the night of 24-25 September 1942 along with Andree Borrel near to Poitiers.Her task was to creat a circuit to named Artist, a role which did not suit her.Her talents in the field were such that she extended herself further than the Poitou being the liason officer between the Scientist,Prosper,and Bricklayer circuits.Her SOE service records that she was a member of the Scientist circuit.These circuits were later were severely mauled by the Gestapo in 1943 but the root cause of the collapse was elsewhere.Lise was described as brave,intelligent and calm enough to extricate herself unscathed from the dangers in the field.No doubt these qualities would be found in her personal file if they still exist.Quite a lot of the SOE fileS were disposed of with rank irresponsibily after the war. Lise was picked up by Lysander on the night of 16-17 August 1943 by Hugh Verity from a landing field north of Tours codenamed "Torticolis".Believe it or not there were three returning passengers that night, the brother and sister Baisacs and Major Bodington (SOE second in command) who apparently went to Paris "to see things for himself".The operation of this movement was coded "Diplomat" and involved the character, Dericourt who history has accused of being a double agent and responsible for the elimination of the Prosper network leading to the deaths of many SOE agents and their intelligence contacts in France.Boddington's "jolly" did not go down too well with Vera Atkins but that is another story.
As Lise de Baissac (Odile), Mme Villameur, serving as a FANY was dropped into France on the night of 24-25 September 1942 along with Andree Borrel near to Poitiers. I believe Andree Borrel and Lise De Baissac were the first women to be parachuted in to France.
I have to agree that it looks like a War Romp and nothing like a factual film. As a bit of interest, I had the great privilege of knowing Pearl Witherington Pearl Cornioley - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia I can confirm that she was not impressed with the film Charlotte Gray !
This must be a Charlotte Gray character.I have never heard of these names.I may be wrong but I do not think so. Why can't those people who make such films make them and portray a real character.Off the cuff, I can think of only two who portrayed real people. Charlotte Gray was loosely based on Nancy Wake. List of Honours Companion of the Order of Australia George Medal Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur (France) Croix de Guerre (France), with two bronze palms and a Silver Star Médaille de la Résistance (France) Medal of Freedom (USA) with Palm RSA Badge in Gold
Charlotte Gray was loosely based on Nancy Wake. Charlotte Gray is a 1999 book by Sebastian Faulks and completes his loose trilogy of books about France with an account of the adventures of a young Scotswoman who becomes involved with the French resistance during the Second World War. It is set in Vichy France during World War II. The story is thought to be based on the exploits of Nancy Wake, codenamed the white mouse, a member of the resistance in war time France and Pearl Cornioley, a British secret service agent. As I said before, Pearl was not very complimentary about this!!! My mother, who worked in the British Embassy in Lisbon during the war knew Pearl then and acted as a sort of 'cupid' between Pearl and her future husband Henri Cornioley by sending notes between them in the diplomatic bag !
