Grey Souls

The film is based on Philippe Claudel's 2003 novel of the same name, which won the Prix Renaudot.

Philippe Claudel co-wrote the screenplay alongside director Yves Angelo.

The film was shot during the winter of 2004-2005 in the Meurthe-et-Moselle department of Lorraine, including in Dombasle-sur-Meurthe, the birthplace of author Philippe Claudel.

Filming also took place in Nancy, at the school of Ville-sur-Saulx, and in Vic-sur-Seille.

The schoolteacher's funeral scene was filmed at the church in Théméricourt, in the Val-d'Oise department, far from the main Lorraine filming locations.

The scene depicting soldiers returning from leave, including the desertion of two of them, was shot between Vigny and Théméricourt in Val-d'Oise.

The film had a budget of 5.34 million euros.

Critical reception was mixed: Le Monde's Thomas Sotinel felt the accumulation of monstrosities and disasters created an overwhelming phantasmagoria despite the polished sets and lighting, while Cahiers du cinéma's Emmanuel Burdeau compared it to an expensive TV movie or its own making-of.