André Malraux was a novelist, critic, and a towering figure in 20th century French arts and culture, and was the country’s first Minister of Culture, appointed in 1959 by President Charles de Gaulle. Adapted from his novel, Malraux’s lone film Sierra de Teruel chronicles his experience fighting with Republican forces in the Spanish Civil War. The film was privately screened a few times in 1939, but was banned and shelved when France declared war on Germany. It was not screened for the public until 1945, and then in a heavily truncated version. A conversation between Jean-Louis Jeannelle, Professor of 20th Century French Literature at the University of Rouen, and Ohio State Associate Professor in the Department of French & Italian, follows the screening.
Cosponsored by the Wexner Center for the Arts, the French Center of Excellence and the French & Italian Department.