L'affaire Farewell
Encyclopedia
L'affaire Farewell is a 2009 French film
directed by Christian Carion
, starring Guillaume Canet
and Emir Kusturica
. The film is an espionage thriller loosely based on actions of the high-ranking KGB official, Vladimir Vetrov
. It was released in the United States in June 2010, under the title Farewell. It was adapted from the book Bonjour Farewell: La vérité sur la taupe française du KGB (1997) by Serguei Kostine.
analyst, disillusioned with the Soviet regime, decides to pass Soviet
secrets, including a list of Soviet spies, to the government of France, then under the newly-elected President François Mitterrand
, a Socialist in coalition with the Communists. Grigoriev hopes to force change in the Soviet Union by revealing their extensive network of spies trying to acquire scientific, technical and industrial information from the West. He uses a naïve French engineer based in Moscow as his unlikely intermediary, despite his lack of espionage skills. After the first transfer of information, Pierre confides in his wife Jessica, who is adamant about his stopping to preserve their family. Grigoriev persuades Pierre to continue without telling Jessica. He will accept neither money nor defection as a reward, but sometimes requests small gifts from Pierre' trips to France, such as a Sony Walkman and Queen
cassette tapes for his son, some cognac
, or books of French poetry. As Farewell's prodigious output blossoms, the French are bewildered by the sheer scale and yield of top Western technology transferred covertly to the Soviets.
Under suspicion that he is not a trustworthy ally, Mitterrand personally hands U.S. President Ronald Reagan
a dossier of invaluable Farewell data during the Ottawa summit. The Americans are astounded with it and other information provided by Farewell, culminating in the full "List X" of Soviet spies within the highest echelons of the Western scientific and industrial apparatus. They embark on an ambitious plan to feed the Soviets erroneous or defective data; shortly after, the network of Soviet technology spies in the West is rolled up, and Reagan announces the "Star Wars" antimissile shield project
. Deprived of hi-tech information from the West, and with their own laboratories behind, the Soviet leadership panics. Seeing this desperate impasse for what it is, Mikhail Gorbachev
, then an upwards-mobile party official, starts preparing the reform policies he is to pursue in the future.
Grigoriev's superior, a double agent for the CIA, is directed by them to sacrifice Grigoriev and save the Froments, all unbeknownst to the French. Grigoriev, under arrest and KGB interrogation, plays to buy the Froments time to escape. They cover their traces and flee in their car to the Finnish border. While in West Germany for debriefing, Froment pleads with the CIA Director to save Grigoriev, praising the integrity and selflessness of the man. The director refuses as a policy principle, having brought the other agent to the West. Grigoriev is granted his request of execution by a marksman on the jetty of the snow-clad lake he loves. The Froments are offered a company job in Manhattan.
with no inside information on the Strategic Defense Initiative
. He began negotiations that eventually culminated in the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
a year later.
and Rotten Tomatoes
.
Cinema of France
The Cinema of France comprises the art of film and creative movies made within the nation of France or by French filmmakers abroad.France is the birthplace of cinema and was responsible for many of its early significant contributions. Several important cinematic movements, including the Nouvelle...
directed by Christian Carion
Christian Carion
Christian Carion is a French film director, dialogue writer and screenwriter.-As director and writer:*2009 : L'affaire Farewell*2005 : Joyeux Noël, starring Diane Kruger, Benno Fürmann and Guillaume Canet...
, starring Guillaume Canet
Guillaume Canet
Guillaume Canet is a French actor and film director.Canet began his career in theatre and television before moving to film. He starred in several films like Joyeux Noël, Love Me If You Dare and The Beach...
and Emir Kusturica
Emir Kusturica
Emir Nemanja Kusturica , is a Serbian filmmaker, actor and musician, recognized for several internationally acclaimed feature films...
. The film is an espionage thriller loosely based on actions of the high-ranking KGB official, Vladimir Vetrov
Vladimir Vetrov
Vladimir Ippolitovich Vetrov was a high-ranking KGB spy during the Cold War, who decided to covertly release to France and NATO valuable information on the Soviet Union's clandestine program aimed at stealing technology from the West.Vetrov was assigned the code-name Farewell by the French...
. It was released in the United States in June 2010, under the title Farewell. It was adapted from the book Bonjour Farewell: La vérité sur la taupe française du KGB (1997) by Serguei Kostine.
Synopsis
In the early 1980s, a high-ranking KGBKGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
analyst, disillusioned with the Soviet regime, decides to pass Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
secrets, including a list of Soviet spies, to the government of France, then under the newly-elected President François Mitterrand
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
, a Socialist in coalition with the Communists. Grigoriev hopes to force change in the Soviet Union by revealing their extensive network of spies trying to acquire scientific, technical and industrial information from the West. He uses a naïve French engineer based in Moscow as his unlikely intermediary, despite his lack of espionage skills. After the first transfer of information, Pierre confides in his wife Jessica, who is adamant about his stopping to preserve their family. Grigoriev persuades Pierre to continue without telling Jessica. He will accept neither money nor defection as a reward, but sometimes requests small gifts from Pierre' trips to France, such as a Sony Walkman and Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
cassette tapes for his son, some cognac
Cognac
Cognac is a commune in the Charente department in southwestern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.-Geography:Cognac is situated on the river Charente between the towns of Angoulême and Saintes. The majority of the town has been built on the river's left bank, with the smaller right...
, or books of French poetry. As Farewell's prodigious output blossoms, the French are bewildered by the sheer scale and yield of top Western technology transferred covertly to the Soviets.
Under suspicion that he is not a trustworthy ally, Mitterrand personally hands U.S. President Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
a dossier of invaluable Farewell data during the Ottawa summit. The Americans are astounded with it and other information provided by Farewell, culminating in the full "List X" of Soviet spies within the highest echelons of the Western scientific and industrial apparatus. They embark on an ambitious plan to feed the Soviets erroneous or defective data; shortly after, the network of Soviet technology spies in the West is rolled up, and Reagan announces the "Star Wars" antimissile shield project
Strategic Defense Initiative
The Strategic Defense Initiative was proposed by U.S. President Ronald Reagan on March 23, 1983 to use ground and space-based systems to protect the United States from attack by strategic nuclear ballistic missiles. The initiative focused on strategic defense rather than the prior strategic...
. Deprived of hi-tech information from the West, and with their own laboratories behind, the Soviet leadership panics. Seeing this desperate impasse for what it is, Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
, then an upwards-mobile party official, starts preparing the reform policies he is to pursue in the future.
Grigoriev's superior, a double agent for the CIA, is directed by them to sacrifice Grigoriev and save the Froments, all unbeknownst to the French. Grigoriev, under arrest and KGB interrogation, plays to buy the Froments time to escape. They cover their traces and flee in their car to the Finnish border. While in West Germany for debriefing, Froment pleads with the CIA Director to save Grigoriev, praising the integrity and selflessness of the man. The director refuses as a policy principle, having brought the other agent to the West. Grigoriev is granted his request of execution by a marksman on the jetty of the snow-clad lake he loves. The Froments are offered a company job in Manhattan.
Aftermath in world affairs
Gorbachev went to the Reykjavík SummitReykjavik Summit
The Reykjavík Summit was a summit meeting between U.S. president Ronald Reagan and Secretary-General of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev, held in the famous house of Höfði in Reykjavík, the capital city of Iceland, on October 11–12, 1986...
with no inside information on the Strategic Defense Initiative
Strategic Defense Initiative
The Strategic Defense Initiative was proposed by U.S. President Ronald Reagan on March 23, 1983 to use ground and space-based systems to protect the United States from attack by strategic nuclear ballistic missiles. The initiative focused on strategic defense rather than the prior strategic...
. He began negotiations that eventually culminated in the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is a 1987 agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union. Signed in Washington, D.C. by U.S. President Ronald Reagan and General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev on December 8, 1987, it was ratified by the United States Senate on May 27, 1988 and...
a year later.
Casting
- Emir KusturicaEmir KusturicaEmir Nemanja Kusturica , is a Serbian filmmaker, actor and musician, recognized for several internationally acclaimed feature films...
– Sergei Grigoriev (the character based on Vetrov) - Guillaume CanetGuillaume CanetGuillaume Canet is a French actor and film director.Canet began his career in theatre and television before moving to film. He starred in several films like Joyeux Noël, Love Me If You Dare and The Beach...
– Pierre Froment, an engineer working in the Moscow branch of French electronics conglomerate Thomson-CSFThomson-CSFThomson-CSF was a major electronics and defence contractor. In December 2000 it was renamed Thales Group.-History:In 1879 Elihu Thomson and Edwin Houston formed the Thomson-Houston Electric Company in the United States.... - Alexandra Maria LaraAlexandra Maria LaraAlexandra Maria Lara is a Romanian-born German actress. She performs predominantly in leading roles in a variety of historical and crime films...
– Jessica, his wife - Willem DafoeWillem DafoeWillem Dafoe is an American film, stage, and voice actor, and a founding member of the experimental theatre company The Wooster Group...
– Feeney, Director of the Central Intelligence AgencyCentral Intelligence AgencyThe Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers... - Fred WardFred WardFreddie Joe "Fred" Ward is an American actor. He began his career in 1979 alongside Clint Eastwood in Escape from Alcatraz. He is best known for his starring roles in the motion pictures Remo Williams, Tremors, Henry & June, Short Cuts, The Right Stuff and Exit Speed...
- U.S. President Ronald ReaganRonald ReaganRonald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor.... - Philippe Magnan – President François MitterrandFrançois MitterrandFrançois Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
of France - Niels ArestrupNiels ArestrupNiels Arestrup is a French actor.Born in Paris into a family of modest means, his father was Danish and his mother was French...
– Vallier, Director of French Security DSTDirection de la surveillance du territoireThe Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire was a directorate of the French National Police operating as a domestic intelligence agency. It was responsible for counterespionage, counterterrorism and more generally the security of France against foreign threats and interference... - David SoulDavid SoulDavid Soul is an American-British actor and singer, best known for his role as Detective Kenneth "Hutch" Hutchinson in the television programme Starsky and Hutch . He gained British citizenship in 2004.-Early life:...
– Hutton, aide to President Reagan - Ingeborga DapkunaiteIngeborga DapkunaiteIngeborga Dapkūnaitė is a Lithuanian actress, who stars mostly in Russian movies.-Youth:Ingeborga Dapkunaite was born in Vilnius, Lithuanian SSR. Her father was a diplomat and her mother a meteorologist. For many years her parents worked in Moscow, and she only saw them on holidays...
– Natasha, Grigoriev's wife - Dina KorzunDina Korzun-Life and career:Korzun was born in Smolensk. She graduated from secondary school and Art school, studied ballet and modern dancing. After graduation from the prestigious Moscow Art Theatre School, she was asked to join the Chekhov Moscow Arts Theater Troupe, where she was a stage actress...
– Alina, a colleague and the mistress of Grigoriev - Yevgeni Vasilyevich Kharlanov – Igor, the Grigorievs' rebellious son
- Christian Sandström – Federal Bureau of InvestigationFederal Bureau of InvestigationThe Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
agent - Diane KrugerDiane KrugerDiane Kruger is a German actress and former fashion model. She is known for roles such as Helen in Troy, Dr. Abigail Chase in National Treasure and its sequel, Bridget von Hammersmark in Inglourious Basterds, Anna in Mr...
, Benno FürmannBenno FürmannBenjamin "Benno" Fürmann is a German film and television actor.-Life and work:Fürmann was born in Berlin-Kreuzberg. By the age of 15 he had lost both his parents. At 17, he had a serious accident while train surfing, and had to spend six weeks in the hospital as a result...
, and Alex FernsAlex FernsAlexander "Alex" Ferns is a Scottish actor and television personality, best known for his EastEnders role as Trevor Morgan, "Britain's most-hated soap villain."...
, amongst others, have cameos.
Reception
The film received positive reviews from United States critics, as measured by the review aggregators MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
and Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
.
Further reading
- Thomas C. Reed, At the Abyss: An Insider’s History of the Cold War (2004)
- Sergei Kostin and Eric Raynaud, Adieu Farewell (Laffont, Paris, 2009, in French); "Farewell" (AmazonCrossing, Aug. 2011, in English). First complete investigation of the Farewell Dossier and its international impact.
- Michel Louyot, Le Violon de neige (Publibook, Paris, 2008; soon to be available in English).