Pedret, a Spanish migrant, has built a prosperous business in which his three sons, Prosper, Hector, Victor are employed. Prosper has married a girl from the local bourgeoisie who has no interest in the factory and its problems. Hector is married to Berthe, a former laundress, whose strength of character and drive attracts the support of Pedret. He supports her in her attempts to bring in a few changes in the factory management. When WWII breaks out, Berthe refuses to imitate her family who retreats in passive neutrality and becomes heavily involved in the Resistance. Techine’s film explores the relation between history and ‘personal histories’ (the title contains a pun on ‘en France’ and ‘enfance’, childhood), focusing on a family from the 1930s to the 1970s. Awards: French Academy of Cinema (1975): Best Supporting Actress for Marie-France Pisier.
Credits: Producer, Vera Belmont ; director, Andre Techine ; writers, Andre Techine, Marylin Goldin ; photography, Bruno Nuytten ; music, Philippe Sarde.
Cast: Jeanne Moreau, Michel Auclair, Marie-France Pisier, Claude Mann, Orane Demazis.
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How to watch
Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
X000182
Languages
English
French
Subject category
Foreign language films
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Colour
Holdings
16mm film; Limited Access Print (Section 2)