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Claude Berri's The Two of Us

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The Two of Us
directed by Claude Berri

Because of the Nazi occupation of France in 1944, eight year old Claude is sent to the countryside by his parents, to live with a Catholic, and anti-semitic, couple.
Elderly Pepe and his wife Meme take Claude in, unaware the boy is Jewish. Here is a trite, often used storyline that could so easily have been mediocre and forgetable, but the three wonderful actors create performances that sing with reality and a truly believable lived in characterization. A gruff old man, a crabby old housewife, and a scared and sad little boy with a secret to protect at all costs -- it all sounds like you have seen it before, but you will fall in love with these gritty real people filmed in wonderful shades and colors of black and white.
Silent film star Michel Simon was 72 years old when he took on the role of Pepe, and it was the capstone of his career. His great performance is matched by Luce Fabiole as his wife, Meme, and by young Alain Cohen as Claude.
Director and co-writer Claude Berri has given us many notable films, like Jeanne de Florette and Manon of the Spring, in a film career that is too little celebrated, and The Two of Us is very near the best.
Originally titled Le Vieil Homme et l'enfant [The Old Man and The Boy], The Two of Us was shorn of four minutes for the American release. A small French classic in the spirit of Francois Truffaut and Louis Malle, this film deserves better than an old, used VHS. Where is the DVD? I saw this film on the big screen back in 1967, and I have never forgotten it. I want the DVD with the four minutes restored!