dbdumonteil Seven years before his first feature-length film "Jenny" ,Carné already displayed the populisme,the command of the picture and the brilliance which would mark his golden era (1936-1946) .With hindsight,it is pity that ,for lack of money,he could not make his final film ,"Mouche" from Guy de Maupassant , which would have taken place down by the Marne ,and which might perhaps have returned him to former glories.Nogent has remained famous in France thanks to a very popular song about " the little white whine you drink under the bowers that way of Nogent ".Carné's short is so dense it's a wonder he could put so many things in it. The trains heading for the El Dorado ,leaving the offices and its typewriters ;then the place with the swarming crowds :some are swimming,some are fishing,some are rowing.All is masterfully filmed,with an incredible sense of rhythm perhaps inspired by previous experiments by Abel Gance ("La Roue" ).But what Carné likes best ,it's the Guinguettes where people dance to the tune of an accordion and drink le Petit Vin Blanc.In his last appearance for the cinema,"Carné L'Homme à la Camera" (1985)a documentary by his peer Christian-Jaque ,you can see Carné watch young people dance :he was probably thinking of those magic places "les Guinguettes" which had become a thing of the past."Nogent" is like a symphony:its ending is a return to peace and quietness.The last Parisians are leaving ,and as the night is falling,the Marne river keeps on flowing ,waiting for the next Sunday.

Nicholas Rhodes Now long departed from this earth, their daily worries, preoccupations and hopes of a better future henceforth consigned to eternity, fixed for ever in time thanks to the magic of celluloid, ordinary Parisians, people just like you and me, shoot off one sunny Sunday in 1929 on a day's outing to their El Dorado ..........this film is pure MAGIC !!It is a magnificent journey back in time to be taken by anyone harking back to pre 1930's visions of the Marne Valley close to Paris. The area in question is situated some four miles to the east of the Capital, and hordes of Parisian's would take the train on sundays out from La Bastille station towards localities such as Nogent-sur-Marne and Joinville-le-Pont where they could bathe in the waters of the Marne river (chance would be a fine thing nowadays ! ) and above all dance and drink in the "guinguettes" which were local dance halls where one could eat and drink ( the name coming from 'guinget' a cheap local white wine.) The guinguettes ( seen at length in the famous film "La Belle Equipe" starring Jean Gabin ) are an integral part of French popular culture, like the "valse musettes" which were danced therein to the sound of roving accordionists. Nogent, El Dorado du dimanche is a documentary which traces the story of one such Sunday in 1929 from morning till evening. Today the scene is much changed, there are only a couple of guinguettes left ( only open in summer)but this film harks back to the glorious days when a four mile outing was considered a treat !! That said, since the late 1990's, the guinguettes are once again coming back into fashion and are frequented by many middle class people. The two mentioned earlier, called "Chez Gégène" and "Le Petit Robinson" are now doing good business and have been tarted up quite well.The film is short but well made considering the era. Several viewings are necessary to notice all the details. I have walked hundreds of times on the banks of the Marne in this area and have fun trying to recognize various places appearing in the film, despite the passage of time ( over 70 years ). At present this area is almost completely unknown to foreign tourists visiting the French capital but the recent introduction of riverboat cruises from Paris as far as this sector and even a little beyond may end up changing this. The film is silent, there is no dialogue but there is excellent, very emotional and completely suited accordion soundtrack played by a certain Bernard Gérard. The final sequence with simultaneous playing of accordion and violin ( two separate tunes ) showing an accordionist sitting alone playing a huge accordion in one of the streets of Nogent after all the day trippers have returned home, is particularly moving.