In The Grand Illusion, these officers are treated with more class than expected. Why? They have it relatively good considering the circumstances. They fail to realize that once they get out of the POW camp, they are just going to be back in the realities of life. Not only do they want to escape but they also keep failing which almost represents fate. They are meant to remain in this camp because it is protected unlike the harsh reality outside the camp. Once they do finally escape, they are forever running (at least until they get to across the border).
In this picture, it is almost a representation of the harsh reality breaking into their life. Maréchal gets a taste of this when he has to leave Else. In this shot, the lighting is high key because it is pretty even lit. This suggests that there is hope because they are out of the camp and they’re where they wanted to be, at least a first. As you look at the shot, your eyes are immediately drawn to Maréchal, being the dominant. You immediately go from the high key positivity usually seen in comedies or musicals to knowing something is up and your emotion is turned due to his expression on his face. The framing is loose because they are out of the POW camp so it does suggest a bit more freedom unlike the imprisonment feeling of a tight frame as suggested earlier in the film. The picture still, however, represents the harsh realities of life that they have voluntarily walked back into. SO while they get a bit more freedom to “move around a bit,” the illusion is that they may have had it better off in one protected place rather than having to run to a new oasis to finally be safe.
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