Review of Days of Glory (2006) by Bill V — 17 Sep 2007

Days of Glory is a plain, old-fashioned World War II war movie in the grand tradition of combat pictures. I thought of â??Platoonâ?? and â??Saving Private Ryanâ?? as I viewed this film.

The French title for the film is "Indigenes". I learned itâ??s a term used to refer to thousands of "indigenous" colonial African soldiers who fought for France in World War II. The film follows a group of indigenes from Algeria to Morocco to Italy to France (Alsace). They finally end up in a village, where they are stationed and commanded to hold a bridge for the invading Allied troops.

These men consider themselves French citizens. But the French military thinks otherwise and summarily treats them as second-class soldiers. They donâ??t get equipment they need. They are bypassed for promotions and in one scene they are even denied tomatoes with their rations. Their commanding officers exploit their patriotism all the time making promises they will never keep. Apparently, this was a motivational tool to get the "wogs" to fight and die for France who treats them like bastard children. Yep. Those progressive French know how to practice racism and discrimination with the best of them.

The film ends as does â??Saving Private Ryanâ?? with one soldierâ??s visit to a military cemetery many years later. At the end, we learn as Algeria won their independence in 1962, the French government froze pensions for all former African empire veterans and benefits for the wounded at 1959 levels. French President Jacques Chirac saw "Days of Glory" and recognized the error of French ways (as if he didnâ??t know about it before seeing the film) and in 2006 the soldiers justly received full pensions.

I recommend this film. It is a story told from the view of the infantryman. It kept my attention although at times it was hard to track because the story moves quickly and you have to try and understand the various stories of the characters involved and how they deal with discrimination, manipulation and false promises.