On January 23, the screening of the adventure biographical drama «Saint-Exupéry» started in Ukrainian cinemas, the plot of which is dedicated, as one might guess, to the famous French aviator and writer, author of «The Little Prince», Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. However, the story focuses not on the hero’s writing activity, but specifically on his piloting career, particularly on the search for Exupéry’s friend, also a pilot, Henri Guillaumet, who crashed during a flight over the Andes. The review below discusses how exciting this rescue mission looks on the cinema screen.
Pluses:
In some moments, it is an interesting story; a peculiar visual component, supported by an appropriate and, by the way, excellent soundtrack that sets the viewer in a certain mood; a good cast, which, however, does not show its full potential;
Minuses:
due to the narrative tone chosen by the authors, some viewers may be disappointed with the adventure (action) component; the story lacks emotion; the fast pace makes some events purely conventional;
«Saint-Exupéry»
Genre adventure biographical drama
Director Pablo Agüero
Cast Louis Garrel, Diane Kruger, Vincent Cassel, Benoît Magimel
Premiere cinemas
Release Year 2025
Website IMDb
In 1930, two best friends Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Henri Guillaumet work as pilots at the Argentine branch of the French company Aéropostale, which carries out international airmail transport over long distances. After another deadly, dangerous flight, the heroes learn that the branch is soon to face cuts, as the management plans to rely on the more stable and safer railway.
However, Saint-Exupéry is not ready to give up so easily and suggests a maneuver to his friend, thanks to which the route would not have to make a huge detour to avoid an extremely high mountain range. Thus, the next day, Guillaumet settles in the pilot’s cabin and embarks on a journey according to the new plan. However, it does not end well, as Henri does not make contact for a long time, and it becomes obvious that he has suffered a crash.
When everyone around is convinced that the doomed man has no chance of surviving in the harsh mountain snows, Saint-Exupéry, joining forces with Guillaumet’s wife Noël, is determined to do everything possible (and even impossible) to save his friend.
Within the usual Hollywood survival cinema, a typical story of heroic spirit and zest for life under extreme inhuman conditions could have emerged. We have seen enough of such survival stories in snowy mountains or forests, some inspired by real events (one of the recent examples being last year’s «Society of the Snow»). In such a case, the narrative would have been from the perspective of Vincent Cassel’s character, who played the missing Henri Guillaumet.
But the French biographical film «Saint-Exupéry» is a bird of a different flight, as its creators were inspired not so much by real events, but rather by openly fairy-tale images (no wonder there are references to «The Little Prince» too — an islet in the shape of a hat appears on the screen right at the beginning). This is also something clearly closer to a fairy tale, something magical, phantasmagoric. Plus, the visual aesthetics, the color filling of the frame, produce the appropriate atmosphere, and the filming style makes you think about exciting high-budget flights in the style of the lavish «Aviator» (2004) by Martin Scorsese last.
The film almost lacks pompous heroism, maximally tense adventures, and strenuous self-overcoming, as there is also no time to dwell on the emotional torments, specifically of the missing pilot’s wife played by Diane Kruger, so you won’t find drama here either.
This fairy-tale, modest approach has its charm, but again, one can only dream about the typical Hollywood plot intensity. And viewers who demand a powerful adventure component from the film may be disappointed.
Louis Garrel, unsurprisingly, gets the most screen time, presenting quite an appealing character, though hardly capable of eliciting a viewer response. Kruger and Vincent Cassel perform strictly in supporting roles, with the latter appearing on-screen for barely half an hour, so talking about deeply profound characters is not appropriate.
«Saint-Exupéry» is an inspired, but simple story not about the strength of spirit, but about true, solid, like rocks, friendship, when you are ready to risk your own life for someone who would do the same for you without hesitation. Although after watching, the impression remains that it lacked emotional content, even though the local soundtrack tried to rectify this.
Where there is a lack of emotions, it’s hard to empathize with the characters. Add to this a crumpled narrative that races at an incredible speed and, in addition to fairy-tale elements, makes some aspects of the story conditional, and in the end, what remains in memory are just the magnificent mountains, contrasting shades in the sky, and the hypnotic flight of a condor effortlessly soaring high in the sky. Indeed, this bird is associated with a particularly interesting and fateful scene, meant to convey that one should never give up. For, as it turns out a bit later, even in the darkest hour, there is always a chance to find the way to the saving light.
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