The 317th Platoon

The 317th Platoon (1965)

La 317ème Section

In Laos, 1954, eight days before the french defeat in the Indochina war, the 317th platoon – four french soldiers and 41 laotian combatants – has been ordered to leave its outpost and to retreat for the plains of Diên Biên Phu, where the french army is getting stucked. Led by the inexperienced and idealistic sous-lieutenant Torrens, fresh out of the military academy, and by adjutant Willsdorf, a WWII veteran of the Werhmacht, the group must cross 150 kilometers of jungle. But dripping rainwater, hostile nature, and the Viêt-minh ambushes expose them to constant danger.

Date of release
1965-03-31
TMDB
7.3 / 10 (85)
Runtime
1h 40m
Genres
War, History, Drama
Director
Pierre Schoendoerffer

Casting

Interesting facts

  • Based on: La 317e section

The 317th Platoon is a 1965 French black-and-white war film set during the First Indochina War (1946–54) written and directed by Pierre Schoendoerffer. The film was based on Schoendoerffer's 1963 novel of the same name.

Production

Pierre Schoendoerffer had been a POW in Vietnam following the French defeat at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.

The film was shot with a crew of six in the middle of a Cambodian forest during the rainy season. Praised for its realism less than a decade after the actual event, French military routine, drills and jargon are accurately depicted. "I imposed a strict military regime on everyone," Schoendoerffer said. "A war film shouldn't be made in comfort."

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

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