Beau travail /

Beau travail is a 1999 French movie directed by Claire Denis that is loosely based on Herman Melville's novella Billy Budd. However, instead of the maritime setting of the novella, the movie takes place in Djibouti where the protagonists are soldiers in the French Foreign Legion. Parts of the soundtrack of the movie are from the opera by Benjamin Britten also based on the novella. Back in France, master sergeant Galoup (Denis Lavant) remembers the time in the desert, where he led his men under the command of Bruno Forestier (Michel Subor). His life there consisted mostly of routine duties like supervising the physical exercise of his men. ("One of the cast had actually been in the Legion, so we took all their real exercises and did them together every day, to concentrate the actors as a group," said Denis. "We never said we were going to choreograph the film. But afterwards, when we started shooting, using Britten's music, those exercises became like a dance.") One day, his troop is joined by Gilles Sentain (Grégoire Colin), whose physical beauty, social skills, and fortitude make Galoup envious. Repressed homosexual feelings on the part of Galoup are suggested.