My weekly movie reviews. You can also read these on letterboxd.
This week focuses on three films by one of my favorite French filmmakers, Bertrand Tavernier.
THE PRINCESS OF MONTPENSIER (2010)
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Stars
Bertrand Tavernier knew how to mount a handsome production. If nothing else, this French period piece is wonderful to look at and I’m not just talking about the cinematography. The detail, the attention to period accuracy in every set and background action, the choreography of the fight sequences, the varied locations… all of it adds up to a picture as handsome as anything Hollywood has produced.
The love triangle (or pentagon?) is not strong enough in passion or conflict to carry the long narrative. The younger cast just doesn’t have the screen presence to make us care about their efforts to snag the titular princess. Therefore, the movie feels weak whenever it does not focus on Lambert Wilson, an incredible actor who steals every moment he’s in. It’s his passion for the princess, an under-developed part of the plot, that should have driven the story. Whether fighting, speaking, or brooding in silence, Wilson lights up the screen and proves himself among the best actors in that era of French cinema.
Watched on AMC Plus.
THE FRENCH MINISTER (2010)
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 Stars
Satire doesn’t translate well, especially the political variety. I can think of many of our own satires that wouldn’t land with a foreign audience.
Such is the case with THE FRENCH MINISTER, Bertrand Tavernie’s “comedy”. It wasn’t funny at all for me, perhaps because I don’t know French politics including the foreign minister the film is based on nor am I familiar with the comic strip source material. In original, I love French comedies but the ones I’ve seen, including a couple with the same leading man Thierry Lhermitte, lean more on slapstick. The actor is quite good in his role but I couldn’t help feeling like his performance (and the whole film) would be stronger if it was purely dramatic. I don’t think of Tavernier as a humorist; his strongest works are quite serious, even bleak, like L.627 and IT ALL STARTS TODAY.
Perhaps this is just a case of a director working with the wrong material.
Watched on Amazon.
D’ARTAGNAN’S DAUGHTER (1994)
Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
Like CAPTAIN CONAN and his later film THE PRINCESS OF MONTPENSIER, this is a handsome production. Every scene is designed with impeccable detail and the cinematography captures it all with cinematic flare but not in a glamorized Hollywood way, in a way that makes us feel like we stepped into the period. Bertrand Tavernier gets that right as he did so many times but there’s a lot that doesn’t quite work in his musketeer movie.
The tone of D’ARTAGNAN’S DAUGHTER is light, more of an adventurous romp than a swashbuckling drama. I’ve stated elsewhere that I don’t think comedy was Tavernier’s forte. There are some funny moments here, especially involving the Planchet character who sadly disappears at random offscreen when he isn’t of use, but much of the humor falls flat. That applies especially to the villains, silly characters who pose no real threat to our heroes at all (one of them isn’t even a bad guy at all!). The main antagonist is a “fool” and incompetent swordsman so the final fight between he and Sophie Marceau, though well-shot and blocked, has no real thrill to it because we already know he’s a buffoon. Without any real conflict, D’ARTAGNAN’S DAUGHTER just moseys along, excelling in moments of action and getting quite dull whenever it settles into unnecessary conspiracy plots. Also, Philippe Sarde’s great score is underused as the movie moves along and it’s noticeable.
Still, the movie is worth watching because Noiret is always fun, Sophie Marceau lights of the screen, and it has enough charm and craft to get by.
Watched on Apple TV.
