Operation Leopard
| La légion saute sur Kolwezi | |
|---|---|
 Original film poster | |
| Directed by | Raoul Coutard |
| Produced by |
Gérard Beytout Georges de Beauregard |
| Written by | André-Georges Brunelin |
| Based on |
La légion saute sur Kolwezi by Pierre Sergent |
| Starring |
Bruno Cremer Mimsy Farmer Giuliano Gemma |
| Music by | Serge Franklin |
| Cinematography | Georges Liron |
| Edited by | Michel Lewin |
| Distributed by |
BELA – FR3 Société Nouvelle de Cinématographie (SNC) |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 96 minutes |
| Country | France |
| Language | French |
La légion saute sur Kolwezi also known as Operation Leopard is a French war film directed by Raoul Coutard filmed in French Guiana. The script is based on the true story of the Battle of Kolwezi that happened in 1978. It was diligently described in a book of the same name[1] by former 1 REP Captain Pierre Sergent.[2] He published his book in 1979; the film came out in 1980. Raoul Coutard shot the film in a documentary style.
Synopsis
The film is based on true events: In 1978 approximately 3000 heavily armed fighters from Katanga crossed the border to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and marched into Kolwezi, a mining centre for copper and cobalt. They took 3000 civilians as hostages. Within a few days between 90 and 280 hostages were killed. The rebels appeared to be unpredictable and are reported to have threatened to annihilate all civilians. The Congo's head of state Mobutu urged Belgium, France and the USA to help. France sent the Foreign Legion's 2nd Foreign Parachute Regiment who were flown from Corsica to Kolwezi. Following their arrival they secured the perimeter in cooperation with Belgian soldiers from Zaire and then started to evacuate the civilists. Within two days more than 2000 Europeans and about 3000 African citizens were saved. The film strives to depict these events in a dramatised form, concentrating on the Europeans' plight.
Production
The late Jean Seberg had filmed scenes on location for the film but was replaced after her death by another American actress, Mimsy Farmer who reshot Seberg's scenes.[3]
Cast
- Bruno Cremer: Pierre Delbart
- Jacques Perrin:Ambassader Berthier
- Laurent Malet: Phillipe Denrémont
- Pierre Vaneck: Colonel Grasser
- Mimsy Farmer: Annie Debrinn
- Giuliano Gemma: Adjudant Fédérico
- Robert Etcheverry : Colonel Dubourg
- Jean-Claude Bouillon : Maurois
References
- ↑ SERGENT Pierre, La légion saute sur Kolwezi : opération léopard, Presses de la Cité, Paris, 1979, Collection Troupes de choc (n° 17), 240 p., 24x15x2 cm, ISBN 2-258-00426-8
- ↑ Johnson, Douglas (17 September 1992). "Obituary: Pierre Sergent". The Independent (London).
- ↑ "La légion saute sur Kolwezi (The Legion Parachutes into Kolwezi also known as Operation Leopard) was the film Jean was working on at the time of her death. She had scenes filmed in Africa and returned to Paris for additional work in September. After her death, the scenes were reshot with actress Mimsy Farmer and Jean's performance on the film were not destroyed, but locked away without the public ever viewing the footage.". Retrieved 21 January 2012.
This article incorporates information from the French Wikipedia.
External links
- Operation Leopard at the Internet Movie Database
- Operation Leopard at AllMovie
- La Légion saute sur Kolwezi on YouTube (Original French version)