| God Needs Men | |
| Director: | Jean Delannoy |
| Producer: | Paul Graetz |
| Based On: | Un recteur de l'Île de Sein by Henri Queffelec |
| Starring: | Pierre Fresnay Madeleine Robinson Daniel Gélin |
| Music: | René Cloërec |
| Cinematography: | Robert Lefebvre |
| Editing: | James Cuenet |
| Studio: | Transcontinental Films |
| Distributor: | Twentieth Century Fox |
| Runtime: | 100 minutes |
| Country: | France |
| Language: | French |
God Needs Men (French: Dieu a besoin des hommes) is a 1950 French historical drama film directed by Jean Delannoy and starring Pierre Fresnay, Madeleine Robinson and Daniel Gélin. The film is based on a 1944 novel Un recteur de l'Île de Sein by Henri Queffelec. It was shot at the Billancourt Studios in Paris. Location shooting took place on the Île de Sein off Finistère in Brittany. The film's sets were designed by the art director René Renoux.
It was originally due to be the French entry at the 1950 Venice Film Festival but it was withdrawn due to fears that its subject might offend the Catholic Church. However, due to its popularity, including amongst Catholics, it was accepted for screening at the Festival anyway.[1] At the 1951 Berlin Film Festival it won the Special Prize for an Excellent Film Achievement.[2]
On a rugged, poverty stricken island off the coast of Brittany many of the inhabitants spend their time as wreckers preying on shipwrecks. Their wildness forces the parish priest to take refuge on the mainland. A fisherman steps forwards to take his place and tries to uphold religion on the island.