Source: Some information on this page may have been sourced as part of the 2023 Wikimedia Australia Partnership Projects grant, with the purpose of improving and expanding the use of Wikidata on our website. Wikidata is a free and open knowledge base that can be read and edited by both humans and machines. Read more about this project here.
When Spaniards invade a Flemish town in 1616, the men make themselves scarce and the women hatch a plan to conquer the enemy by seducing them with a lavish banquet. So impressed are the soldiers by the this gesture, they decide to not destroy the town, nor tax the inhabitants and instead return year after year continuing their association with the women who live there. The lavish sets and costumes entertainingly evoke the bucolic life of 17th century Flanders, in a successful attempt to deliver, writ-large, the poetic setting of a Flemish masterpiece. A sharp amusing script has made this film a continuous favourite with audiences. Controversially, the film was banned in Germany, suspected of parodying the rising Nazi army. Winner of Best Director at the 1936 Venice Film Festival.
Credits: Director, Jacques Feyder ; writer, Charles Spaak, Jacques Feyder, Jacques Feyder ; photography, Harry Stradling ; music, Louis Beydis ; editing, Jacques Brillouin.
Cast: Francois Rosay, Jena Murat, Louis Jouvety, Lyne Clevers, Andre Alerme, Micheline Cheirel.
Content notification
Our collection comprises over 40,000 moving image works, acquired and catalogued between the 1940s and early 2000s. As a result, some items may reflect outdated, offensive and possibly harmful views and opinions. ACMI is working to identify and redress such usages.
Learn more about our collection and our collection policy here. If you come across harmful content on our website that you would like to report, let us know.
How to watch
Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
F000035
Languages
English
French
Subject categories
Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Flanders
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Black and White
Holdings
35mm film; Limited Access Print (Section 2)