The Prince of the Pacific (Le Prince du Pacifique in French) is a 2000 French adventure comedy film directed by Alain Corneau.
During World War I, the French Captain Alfred de Morsac (Thierry Lhermitte) is assigned to the isle of Fenua Poerava ("isle of the Black Pearl" in Tahitian), a small paradise in French Polynesia. He earned the Croix de Guerre award fighting in Verdun, and comes to train a battalion of local tirailleurs to bolster the French army. The natives, a tribe called Hiva, are under the rule of the loathsome Commandant Lefèvre (François Berléand), who soon has them chase Morsac and a scoundrel named Barnabé (Patrick Timsit), with which Morsac is forced to team up to survive.
When in hiding, Morsac befriends Reia (Anituavau Landé), the isle's young prince. Reia sees the legendary Tefaora (a liberator figure) in Morsac, a sentiment that Reia's French mother Moeata (Marie Trintignant) doesn't share, out of her hatred of French colonialism.
The Prince of the Pacific provides examples of the following tropes:
- Antagonistic Governor: Lefèvre is a cruel, greedy and racist tyrant of a French colonial governor, who dominates the locals with an iron fist.
- Character Catchphrase: Morsac often brings up his times serving in French colonized-Morocco ("At the time, in Morocco..."), which gets on Barnabé's nerves over time.
- The Chosen Zero: Reia believes Morsac is the legendary Tefaora who will free his people from the tyranny of Lefèvre. Morsac clearly doesn't live up to this until the climax.
- During the War: The film is set during World War I. There's a brief scene of Morsac being wounded on the No Man's Land in Verdun, clinging onto the French flag. It earned him plenty of medals.
- Evil Colonialist: Lefèvre has only contempt and racist feelings for the locals, and brutally represses their revolt attempts.
- Evil Is Petty: Lefèvre is a vile and loathsome governor, and a complete jerk as well.
- Fictional Province: The isle of Fenua Poerava doesn't exist, it's a fictional isle of French Polynesia.
- How We Got Here: The film opens with a much older Morsac telling his story to another man.
- Odd Couple: The Officer and a Gentleman Morsac is forced to team up with the unrefined scoundrel Barnabé (or rather the other way around, considering how Barnabé is annoyed by Morsac bossing him around and always talking about his Glory Days in Morocco).
- Pressure Point: Whenever Lefèvre gets angry and as a result loses control of himself, his aide applies pressure on his shoulder muscles and neck, which calms him down instantly.
- Raised by Natives: Marie-Louise "Moeata" was born on Fenua Poerava from French parents (her father was a missionary). They died, she was raised by locals, took a native name, learned their language, married a Hiva chief, had a son with the chief, and she despises French colonialism.
- Villainous Breakdown: Lefèvre frequently loses control when angry, and in such cases his aide has to calm him down with a Pressure Point on his shoulder muscles and neck.
