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RESISTANCE AND LIBERATION France at war, 1942-1945 DOUGLAS PORCH 832pp. Cambridge University Press. 35 [pounds sterling] (US $39.99). German forces attacked France on May 10, 1940. Only three days later, [...]

The article discusses three books that explore the relationship between French cinema and the German Occupation during World War II. The first book, "Reframing remembrance. Contemporary French cinema and the Second World War" by Lisa Harper Campbell, examines the cultural and artistic vitality of French cinema during the Occupation. The second book, "Revolution in paradise: veiled representations of Jewish characters in the cinema of occupied France" by Yehuda Moraly, challenges the consensus that there were no examples of antisemitism in films of this period. The third book, "Continental films. French cinema under German control" by Christine Leteux, focuses on the Continental film company and its role in the French film industry during the Occupation. The article highlights the different perspectives and interpretations presented in these books, emphasizing the complexities and ambiguities of this historical period. [Extracted from the article]

This article uses the writings of the famous resister-turned-historian Daniel Cordier as a prism through which to examine how witnesses and historians have approached the history of the French Resistance since 1945. Cordier, having served as Jean Moulin’s secretary in the war, later became his biographer. His neopositivist approach prioritized the use of written archives over memories. Since Cordier himself later wrote his own memoirs, the article examines the problems with this autobiographical text. Examining Cordier’s reticence about discussing his own homosexuality, it suggests that between the lines of his memoir one can envisage the possibility one day of writing an emotional history of the Resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]