The Great Hope (1937)
Scenes and images from the French Communist Party's (PCF) 1937 Congress in Arles. La Grande Espérance highlights some of the PCF's new concerns under the Popular Front: a warning against international fascism, a desire for organic unity, and the defense of national heritage and regional cultures. It also reveals the first signs of a cult of personality surrounding Maurice Thorez. La Grande Espérance was screened (and possibly re-edited) after the Liberation. A commentary was then added to the credits emphasizing the continuity of the Communist Party’s political line and the sacrifice of its activists during the war. Today, only this post-1945 version exists.
Director: Jacques Becker
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Maurice Thorez as Himself |
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Marcel Cachin as Himself |
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Jacques Duclos as Himself |
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Danièle Casanova as Herself |
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Benoît Frachon as Himself |
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Georges Politzer as Himself |
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Marie Politzer as Herself |
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Joseph Ramier as Himself |
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Martha Desrumeaux as Herself |
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Pierre Semard as Himself |
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Julien Racamond as Himself |
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Jean-Richard Bloch as Himself |
| Directing | Jacques Becker | Director |
