The Silent World

1956 French documentary film co-directed by Jacques Cousteau and Louis Malle

This article is about the film. For the book, see The Silent World: A Story of Undersea Discovery and Adventure.

The Silent World

Promotional release poster

Le Monde du silence
Directed by| Jacques Cousteau
Louis Malle
Written by| Jacques Cousteau
James Dugan
Based on| The Silent World: A Story of Undersea Discovery and Adventure by Jacques Cousteau
Starring| Jacques Cousteau
Cinematography| Louis Malle
Underwater photography:
Philippe Agostino
Edited by| Georges Alépée
Music by| Yves Baudrier

Production
companies

FSJYC Production
Requins Associés
Société Filmad
Titanus

Distributed by| Rank

Release dates

* 26 May 1956 (1956-05-26) (Cannes)
* 15 August 1956 (1956-08-15) (Japan)

Running time

| 86 minutes
Country| France
Language| French
Box office| $3 million (rentals)

The Silent World (French: Le Monde du silence) is a 1956 French documentary film co-directed by Jacques Cousteau and Louis Malle. One of the first films to use underwater cinematography to show the ocean depths in color,[1][2] its title derives from Cousteau's 1953 book The Silent World: A Story of Undersea Discovery and Adventure.

## Film

[edit]

The film was shot aboard the ship Calypso. Cousteau and his team of divers shot 25 kilometers of film over two years in the Mediterranean Sea, the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, of which 2.5 kilometers were included in the finished documentary.

The film later faced criticism for environmental damage done during the filmmaking. In one scene, the crew of the Calypso massacre a school of sharks that were drawn to the carcass of a baby whale for some reason, which itself had been mortally injured by the crew, albeit accidentally (Cousteau had the ship driven into a pod of whales to get a close-up view, striking one whale in the process before the baby was lacerated by the prop). In another, Cousteau uses dynamite near a coral reef in order to make a more complete census of the marine life in its vicinity. Cousteau later became more environmentally conscious, involved in marine conservation, and was even called "the father of the environmental movement" by Ted Turner.[3]

## Reception

[edit]

The Silent World opened at the 1956 Cannes Film Festival and won the Palme d'Or award;[4] it was the only documentary film to win the award until Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 repeated the feat in 2004.

The film was released in the United States on September 24, 1956 by Columbia Pictures and earned theatrical rentals of over $3 million.[5]

It was the first of Cousteau's documentary films to win an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film.

## See also

[edit]

* World Without Sun – 1964 film by Jacques Cousteau
* Voyage to the Edge of the World – 1976 French nature documentary

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Sesto Continente directed by Folco Quilici and released in 1954, was the first full-length, full-color underwater documentary. NYtimes.com
2. ^ IMDb.com
3. ^ CNN.com
4. ^ "Festival de Cannes: The Silent World". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
5. ^ Byron, Stuart (15 October 1969). "Salt Lake Firm's 'Alaskan Safari' May Have Hit $4,000,000 in Rentals". Variety. p. 19.

## External links

[edit]

* The Silent World at IMDb
* The Silent World at Rotten Tomatoes
* Jacques Cousteau's The Silent World by Greg Rubinson at salon.com, July 15, 2002, retrieved June 14, 2011

* v
* t
* e

Jacques Cousteau

Films directed|

* The Silent World (1956)
* World Without Sun (1964)
* Voyage to the Edge of the World (1976)

Other works|

* The Silent World (1953 book)
* The Golden Fish (1959 film produced)
* The Ocean World of Jacques Cousteau (1973–1978 encyclopedia)
* The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau (1976 television series)

Expedition ships|

* RV Calypso
* Alcyone

Concepts and designs|

* Aqua-Lung
* Calypso camera
* Continental Shelf Station Two
* Deep Star 4000
* SP-350 Denise
* Turbosail

Works about|

* "Calypso" (1975 song)
* Cries from the Deep (1982 documentary)
* The Odyssey (2016 biopic)
* Becoming Cousteau (2021 documentary)

Tributes|

* En attendant Cousteau (1990 album)
* The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004 film)
* Mission 31 (2014 expedition)

* v
* t
* e

Films directed by Louis Malle

Feature films|

* Elevator to the Gallows (1958)
* The Lovers (1958)
* Zazie dans le Métro (1960)
* A Very Private Affair (1962)
* The Fire Within (1963)
* Long Live Maria! (1965)
* The Thief of Paris (1967)
* Murmur of the Heart (1971)
* Lacombe, Lucien (1974)
* Black Moon (1975)
* Pretty Baby (1978)
* Atlantic City (1980)
* My Dinner with Andre (1981)
* Crackers (1984)
* Alamo Bay (1985)
* Au revoir les enfants (1987)
* May Fools (1990)
* Damage (1992)
* Vanya on 42nd Street (1994)

Short films|

* Crazeologie
* Station 307
* Spirits of the Dead (segment "William Wilson")

Documentaries|

* The Silent World
* Vive le Tour
* Calcutta
* Humain, trop humain
* Place de la République
* Close Up

Television|

* Bons baisers de Bangkok
* Phantom India
* Dominique Sanda ou Le rêve éveillé
* God's Country
* And the Pursuit of Happiness

Awards for The Silent World

* v
* t
* e

Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film

1942–1975|

* The Battle of Midway / Kokoda Front Line! / Moscow Strikes Back / Prelude to War (1942)
* Desert Victory (1943)
* The Fighting Lady (1944)
* The True Glory (1945)
* No Award (1946)
* Design for Death (1947)
* The Secret Land (1948)
* Daybreak in Udi (1949)
* The Titan: Story of Michelangelo (1950)
* Kon-Tiki (1951)
* The Sea Around Us (1952)
* The Living Desert (1953)
* The Vanishing Prairie (1954)
* Helen Keller in Her Story (1955)
* The Silent World (1956)
* Albert Schweitzer (1957)
* White Wilderness (1958)
* Serengeti Shall Not Die (1959)
* The Horse with the Flying Tail (1960)
* Sky Above and Mud Beneath (1961)
* Black Fox: The Rise and Fall of Adolf Hitler (1962)
* Robert Frost: A Lover's Quarrel with the World (1963)
* World Without Sun (1964)
* The Eleanor Roosevelt Story (1965)
* The War Game (1966)
* The Anderson Platoon (1967)
* Journey into Self (1968)
* Arthur Rubinstein – The Love of Life (1969)
* Woodstock (1970)
* The Hellstrom Chronicle (1971)
* Marjoe (1972)
* The Great American Cowboy (1973)
* Hearts and Minds (1974)
* The Man Who Skied Down Everest (1975)

1976–present|

* Harlan County, USA (1976)
* Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? (1977)
* Scared Straight! (1978)
* Best Boy (1979)
* From Mao to Mozart: Isaac Stern in China (1980)
* Genocide (1981)
* Just Another Missing Kid (1982)
* He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin' (1983)
* The Times of Harvey Milk (1984)
* Broken Rainbow (1985)
* Artie Shaw: Time Is All You've Got / Down and Out in America (1986)
* The Ten-Year Lunch (1987)
* Hotel Terminus: The Life and Times of Klaus Barbie (1988)
* Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt (1989)
* American Dream (1990)
* In the Shadow of the Stars (1991)
* The Panama Deception (1992)
* I Am a Promise: The Children of Stanton Elementary School (1993)
* Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision (1994)
* Anne Frank Remembered (1995)
* When We Were Kings (1996)
* The Long Way Home (1997)
* The Last Days (1998)
* One Day in September (1999)
* Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport (2000)
* Murder on a Sunday Morning (2001)
* Bowling for Columbine (2002)
* The Fog of War (2003)
* Born into Brothels (2004)
* March of the Penguins (2005)
* An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
* Taxi to the Dark Side (2007)
* Man on Wire (2008)
* The Cove (2009)
* Inside Job (2010)
* Undefeated (2011)
* Searching for Sugar Man (2012)
* 20 Feet from Stardom (2013)
* Citizenfour‎ (2014)
* Amy (2015)
* O.J.: Made in America (2016)
* Icarus (2017)
* Free Solo (2018)
* American Factory (2019)
* My Octopus Teacher (2020)
* Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)
* Navalny (2022)
* 20 Days in Mariupol (2023)
* No Other Land (2024)

* v
* t
* e

Cannes Film Festival Palme d'Or

1939–1975|

* Union Pacific (1939)
* No festival held (1940–1945)
* Brief Encounter (1946)
* The Last Chance (1946)
* The Lost Weekend (1946)
* María Candelaria (1946)
* Men Without Wings (1946)
* Neecha Nagar (1946)
* Pastoral Symphony (1946)
* The Red Meadows (1946)
* Rome, Open City (1946)
* Torment (1946)
* The Turning Point (1946)
* Antoine and Antoinette (1947)
* Crossfire (1947)
* The Damned (1947)
* Dumbo (1947)
* Ziegfeld Follies (1947)
* No festival held (1948)
* The Third Man (1949)
* No festival held (1950)
* Miracle in Milan (1951)
* Miss Julie (1951)
* Othello (1951)
* Two Cents Worth of Hope (1952)
* The Wages of Fear (1953)
* Gate of Hell (1954)
* Marty (1955)
* The Silent World (1956)
* Friendly Persuasion (1957)
* The Cranes Are Flying (1958)
* Black Orpheus (1959)
* La Dolce Vita (1960)
* The Long Absence (1961)
* Viridiana (1961)
* O Pagador de Promessas (1962)
* The Leopard (1963)
* The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964)
* The Knack ...and How to Get It (1965)
* The Birds, the Bees and the Italians (1966)
* A Man and a Woman (1966)
* Blowup (1967)
* Festival cancelled while in progress (1968)
* if.... (1969)
* M*A*S*H (1970)
* The Go-Between (1971)
* The Mattei Affair (1972)
* The Working Class Goes to Heaven (1972)
* The Hireling (1973)
* Scarecrow (1973)
* The Conversation (1974)
* Chronicle of the Years of Fire (1975)

1976–2000|

* Taxi Driver (1976)
* Padre Padrone (1977)
* The Tree of Wooden Clogs (1978)
* Apocalypse Now (1979)
* The Tin Drum (1979)
* All That Jazz (1980)
* Kagemusha (1980)
* Man of Iron (1981)
* Missing (1982)
* Yol (1982)
* The Ballad of Narayama (1983)
* Paris, Texas (1984)
* When Father Was Away on Business (1985)
* The Mission (1986)
* Under the Sun of Satan (1987)
* Pelle the Conqueror (1988)
* Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989)
* Wild at Heart (1990)
* Barton Fink (1991)
* The Best Intentions (1992)
* Farewell My Concubine (1993)
* The Piano (1993)
* Pulp Fiction (1994)
* Underground (1995)
* Secrets & Lies (1996)
* The Eel (1997)
* Taste of Cherry (1997)
* Eternity and a Day (1998)
* Rosetta (1999)
* Dancer in the Dark (2000)

2001–present|

* The Son's Room (2001)
* The Pianist (2002)
* Elephant (2003)
* Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)
* L'Enfant (2005)
* The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006)
* 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (2007)
* The Class (2008)
* The White Ribbon (2009)
* Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010)
* The Tree of Life (2011)
* Amour (2012)
* Blue Is the Warmest Colour (2013)
* Winter Sleep (2014)
* Dheepan (2015)
* I, Daniel Blake (2016)
* The Square (2017)
* Shoplifters (2018)
* Parasite (2019)
* No festival held (2020)
* Titane (2021)
* Triangle of Sadness (2022)
* Anatomy of a Fall (2023)
* Anora (2024)
* It Was Just an Accident (2025)

* v
* t
* e

National Board of Review Award for Best International Film

1934–1975|

* Man of Aran (1934)
* No Award (1935)
* Carnival in Flanders (1936)
* The Eternal Mask (1937)
* La Grande Illusion (1938)
* Port of Shadows (1939)
* The Baker's Wife (1940)
* Pépé le Moko (1941)
* No Award (1942–1949)
* The Titan (1950)
* Rashomon (1951)
* The Sound Barrier (1952)
* A Queen Is Crowned (1953)
* Romeo and Juliet (1954)
* The Prisoner (1955)
* The Silent World (1956)
* Ordet (1957)
* Pather Panchali (1958)
* Wild Strawberries (1959)
* The World of Apu (1960)
* Die Brücke (1961)
* Sundays and Cybèle (1962)
* 8½ (1963)
* World Without Sun (1964)
* Juliet of the Spirits (1965)
* The Sleeping Car Murders (1966)
* Elvira Madigan (1967)
* War and Peace (1968)
* Shame (1969)
* The Wild Child (1970)
* Claire's Knee (1971)
* The Sorrow and the Pity (1972)
* Cries and Whispers (1973)
* Amarcord (1974)
* The Story of Adele H. (1975)

1976–present|

* The Marquise of O (1976)
* That Obscure Object of Desire (1977)
* Autumn Sonata (1978)
* La Cage aux Folles (1979)
* The Tin Drum (1980)
* A Few Days from the Life of I. I. Oblomov (1981)
* Mephisto (1982)
* Fanny and Alexander (1983)
* A Sunday in the Country (1984)
* Ran (1985)
* Otello (1986)
* Jean de Florette / Manon des Sources (1987)
* Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988)
* Story of Women (1989)
* Cyrano de Bergerac (1990)
* Europa Europa (1991)
* Indochine (1992)
* Farewell My Concubine (1993)
* Eat Drink Man Woman (1994)
* Shanghai Triad (1995)
* Ridicule (1996)
* Shall We Dance? (1997)
* Central Station (1998)
* All About My Mother (1999)
* Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
* Amores perros (2001)
* Talk to Her (2002)
* The Barbarian Invasions (2003)
* The Sea Inside (2004)
* Paradise Now (2005)
* Volver (2006)
* The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007)
* Mongol (2008)
* A Prophet (2009)
* Of Gods and Men (2010)
* A Separation (2011)
* Amour (2012)
* The Past (2013)
* Wild Tales (2014)
* Son of Saul (2015)
* The Salesman (2016)
* Foxtrot (2017)
* Cold War (2018)
* Parasite (2019)
* La Llorona (2020)
* A Hero (2021)
* Close (2022)
* Anatomy of a Fall (2023)
* The Seed of the Sacred Fig (2024)

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