Jean Epstein has a passionate love for Brittany. This is the second or third film he has made about it, and each time he uses his incredible talent with these new wonderful means of expression in the service of this beautiful place, allowing us to get to know it better and eventually making us love it as he does. This time Chanson d’Armor is a film spoken in the Breton language with French subtitles, indisputably the very first one of all time. It is truly an original idea of Jean Epstein’s to make us hear this foreign language, so little known yet so photogenic. Especially the untranslated songs of Armor, which we hear for the first time. Chanson d’Armor, which sounds like an old Breton love story, was adapted from a script written by Jean des Cognets: Jean-Marie Maudez, a young Breton of humble origin, is in love with Rozen, the daughter of the town’s rich family. And she is in love with him. But a wealthier fiancé has already been chosen for her. (…) Yvan Le Mar’hadour is remarkable playing Jean-Marie, with the nostalgic look of forbidden love in hiseyes, and Solane Montchâtre is charming as Rozen. Viguier, l’innocent, creates a very original character. Rozen’s tutor is Fanch Gourvil, a Breton writer. Marinette Fournis is enchanting, and Georges Prieur impeccably elegant. Jean Epstein deftly uses the dramatic plot in a way that shows us the real Brittany: the dances (with the collaboration of the “Reines” of Cornwall), celebrations, boxing matches between boys, its farmers, churches, interiors, fishermen at work, their trials and tribulations… It is a wonderful artistic and dramatic film, a kind of fictionalized documentary of the best kind.

R.F., “Le Courrier cinématographique”, n. 7/8, February 23-March 2, 1935