After a timid start, Antonin Baudry’s two-part film, with a whopping €75 million budget, has established itself as the French early summer success at cinema.
“Bayde”, “industrial disaster”, “failure”…Movie release Battle of de Gaulle: Iron Age This did not bode well for Antonin Baudry. This first part of the diptych about the general attracted just over 380,000 spectators in its first seven days of theatrical release. Very disappointing figures for a project whose total cost exceeds 75 million euros – over budget for the pharaohs Count de Monte Cristo (42 million),Asterix and Obelix: Celestial Empire (62 million) or even Three Musketeers (72 million).
“Many were screaming about failure, a disaster from the first week, but it was too early to talk about it”– admits Eric Marty, general director of Comscore France, the French institute for measuring box office receipts. The release of the full-length film coincided with the usual low cinema attendance in early June. “This is somewhat normal seasonality of the market”– he explains. “Even if the start wasn’t extraordinary, there was great momentum that got us excited for the future.”
“Despite everything, there was quite a positive trend, and we were right, because today the bet is winning.”
Eric Marty, General Manager of Comscore France
in FranceInformation
Battle of Goll: Iron Age now has over 1.6 million entries after five weeks and part two Battle of Goll: I write your name surpassed 800,000 viewers just ten days after its release.
“I wasn’t really convinced by the offer, I thought it was another period film about the Second World War, and in the end I agreed and was shocked.”– admits Linda, a history buff. This viewer is not the only one who had this prejudice. The film’s timid opening can be explained in the same way. “It’s not easy to make people understand through promotional materials that they will get the full movie experience, that they will laugh, be excited, learn new things, be proud of their own history, especially when you are offering a historical and war film.”explains Nathalie Sieta, Deputy General Manager of Distribution at Pathé Films.
The film presents facts sometimes unknown to the general public, such as the failed Dakar landing attempt and the demonstration of high school students and students on November 11, 1940, and also gives an intimate portrait of General De Gaulle alone, at times falling into despair.
“People thought they knew everything about the Second World War and De Gaulle, but in the end they didn’t. “Everything we learn in the film are things that no one knows about except historians or history buffs.”
Natalie Sieta, Deputy General Manager of Distribution, Pathé Films
in FranceInformation
Thus, the rave reviews from early audiences created positive momentum and contributed to the feature film’s later success. “The public didn’t necessarily expect to see what they saw, so it generated a loud and exceptional word of mouth.”, she is happy. This is a film that hits you to the core, but it’s hard to realize at first.”
Plus, the competition was pretty tough in June with two phenomenal films made by YouTubers – Obsession etc. Utility rooms – collided Battle of de Gaulle. “These are films that young people in particular have been looking forward to. The De Gaulle film is a big fresco that is aimed at a very large audience that is not easy to mobilize. This is an audience that doesn’t necessarily go to the movies very often, and so there has to be a damn good reason to travel.”says Eric Marty.
Famous YouTuber Inoxtag also took part in the promotional campaign by hosting “watch parties” for two films, organized especially for his subscribers. The goal was clear: defeat the youngest. But the target audience was not convinced. So it took time and several promotional videos on social media to get young people to come to the theaters and appreciate what the feature film was about. “The initial target was a fairly older audience who are naturally more sensitive to these topics, but then the target expanded to a younger audience through heavy promotion on social media.”explains Nathalie Sieta.
A big victory for director Antonin Baudry, who wanted to reach out to teenagers through his project. “I made this film for the younger generation, for my children and their friends, from teenagers 15-16 years old to those in their twenties. It’s not easy to be a teenager today, we feel powerless in relation to the main events in the world, the forces acting outside of us. This is what people experienced in 1940 when the German army landed on their streets.”“, says the press release.
As for the numbers, Iron Age recorded a 17% increase in attendance between the third and fourth weeks in theaters and a huge 71% jump between the fourth and fifth weeks. “In the fourth week the film had more views than in the first, this is extremely rare,” assure Eric Marty.
The film festival and the heat wave that hit France at the end of June are among the factors explaining this increase in attendance. “A heat wave brings people to movie theaters, often with air conditioning, and family and long-form films benefit the most.”– says Nathalie Sieta. Battle of Goll ticks all these boxes.
Organized from June 28 to July 1, the Film Festival (tickets for which cost €5) undoubtedly contributed to the film’s growing success. Battle of Goll : I write your name was due to be released on July 3, but Pathé decided to push its release back a week to June 26 so that the second part could benefit from this commercial operation. “These are not two films, but a film in two parts, so, leaving the first, I really want to watch the second”– explains the Deputy General Director of Distribution of Pathé Films.
“We felt kind of impatient, so getting them together was good.”
Natalie Sieta, Deputy General Manager, Distribution, Pathé Films
in FranceInformation
The decision to release the film in two parts in just a month was a bold risk, but one that ended up winning. “The response to the first one is very positive, and the second one is even better. The two films are currently feeding off each other.”“says Eric Marty. “Starting this weekend, they are back-to-back at the box office.”
These closer releases also gave the films the benefit of a larger promotional campaign. “Typically, promotion ends when the film is released in theaters. This allowed us to continue promotion to number 2, which is an advantage.”assures Natalie Sieta. Battle of Goll should continue rolling in the summer. “What’s next? A little. I expect a very big hit on July 14th for these two films. This is a film about France, it will definitely attract the attention of the audience, that’s for sure. The results of the fifth week will be very good.”says Eric Marty. But will these entries be enough to make both films profitable? As of July 5, the project had brought in more than 16 million euros… with a budget four times that.