La vache et le prisonnier

Had Claude Autant-Lara directed this adaptation of Jacques Antoine's 'Une histoire vraie' as originally intended, he would most certainly have cast Bourvil as anti-hero Charles Baille, not least because he and Fernandel had not spoken since their disagreements while making 'L'Auberge Rouge'. Henri Verneuil it was who stepped up to the plate and although this marked their ninth collaboration the director was by all accounts so exasperated by Fernandel's demands that he found himself wishing he were working with Bourvil. As it happened Bourvil appeared opposite Fernandel four years later in 'La Cuisine au buerre' and vowed never to work with him again!

Although this was their last film together it proved to be an unqualified triumph for them both, putting Verneuil firmly on the map and giving Fernandel his best loved and most iconic role since Don Camillo.

Set during World War II, this tale of an escaped prisoner's odyssey on foot to freedom accompanied by a bovine named Marguerite and carrying a tin bucket suits Verneuil's directorial style to a tee as it is slowly paced with no technical flourishes. The mood of the piece is enhanced immeasurably by the monochrome cinematography of Roger Hubert and a haunting score by Paul Durand. As one would expect from Fernandel there are elements of farce here but some very touching moments also. Fernandel himself is a model of restraint and his understated performance is arguably his best.

Fernandel was ever aware of the 'family audience' and this must account in part for the film's continued popularity, not to mention its depiction of the relationship that is possible between man and beast. Its universal appeal undoubtedly lies in its message, similar to that of Renoir's 'La Grande Illusion', which is that even in the grimmest of times innate Humanity is able to cross borders and transcend the barriers of language.