Veille d'armes

Historian Jean Tulard rightly said that the true star of the movie was neither Victor Francen nor Annabella -who was awarded the Volpi Cup for her performance- but the glorious French navy.All are proud ,from the captain to the seaman recruits.There's informality between the handsome officer (who was Annabella's former suitor before she married Francen who could be her father obviously) and his orderly (played by Roland Toutain,L'Herbier's Rouletabille in "Le Mystere De La Chambre Jaune").

Your disbelief needs to be suspended to swallow such a story:Annabella is locked up (due to a mistake) in her former love's cabin on her husband's warship which sails away !Nonetheless,it is useful to have your wife aboard when you are court-martialled after your ship sank."We normally sank" a young recruit explains.

L'Herbier's fancy for the navy was to continue in "La Porte Du Large" ,the same year with the same actor and he was to sink lower;it was the somber occupation days before the director was in shape again with such works as " La Comédie Du Bonheur" "La Nuit Fantastique" and "L'Honorable Catherine".