A Man Escaped
Robert Bresson
Planning a prison break requires patience. So does watching someone plan a prison break. Robert Bresson doesn’t offer thrills in A Man Escaped. Instead, we get a play by play account based on the true story of how André Devigny, a member of the French Resistance, escaped Montluc prison during World War II.
Bresson shot the film in the prison where the Germans held Devigny. Bresson even used some of the tools that Devigny used to escape. Viewed through the lens of Devigny's story, A Man Escaped lands. Viewed through the eyes of a modern viewer hooked on fast-paced storytelling and explosive moments, it sinks.
I enjoyed A Man Escaped. But I also fell asleep for a bit midway through.
