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Synopsis: The
film opens in 1572 with an arranged wedding taking place between Margot (Adjani) and Henri
of Navarre (Auteuil), officially an attempt to reconcile the Catholics and Protestants and
bring the people together as one. Fanatically defending the Catholic way of doing
things is Margots mother, Catherine di Medici (Lisi), who advises her son King
Charles IX (Anglade) - a very ambivalent, child-like monarch - with calculating precision.
Reconciliation between the opposing religions is, in fact, the last thing on her mind, and
events quickly spiral out of control as thousands of Protestants are murdered in what
would become known as the St Bartholomews Day Massacre. Henri is spared only by
converting to Catholicism, but his erstwhile bride is less than interested; shes
fallen in love with one of the enemy, La Mole (Vincent Perez). As Catherines
machinations pick up pace around her, Margot learns first-hand just how brutal the society
of which shes a key part can be.
Reviews;
Magill's Survey of Cinema:
"A gripping film... Queen Margot brings the players to life, presenting a
fascinating first family for whom greed, deception, incest, debauchery, murder, and
genocide were the order of the day. Both women (Lisi and Adjani) are impressive in
divergent roles. They are supported by powerful performances by the three leading men.
Anglade's intensity, Auteuil's subtlety, and Perez's sensuality add spice
to the proceedings."
Frenchfilm.com:
"The film succeeds primarily as a result of director Patrice Chéreau s
incredible attention to detail. He creates a 16th century France that is frightening
in its realism, a land soaked in terror, hunger and filth. There are some creditable
performances from Auteuil, Adjani and Perez."
Philadelphia Daily News:
"Chereau directed the film with a fine sense of period, illuminating the pomp of the
French court as well as the squalor both inside and outside the Louvre palace. The saga is
laden with treachery and butchery, yet it also offers a cruel beauty that is rare in
films... The cast is filled with superior actors, most of whom are unfamiliar on these
shores. Especially impressive is Vincent Perez as Margot's dauntless
lover."
San Francisco Chronicle:
"Adjani has a number of gorgeous lovemaking scenes with La Mole, a Huguenot soldier
played by Vincent Perez. In one beautiful sequence she and her
lover watch the sun rise over a clear, gray horizon. It's a moment of absolute
romance."
DVD.net.au:
"Director Patrice Chereau, along with brilliant cinematographer Philippe Rousselot
and a stunning design department, has created a totally convincing picture of 16th-century
France complete with lavish costumes, massively detailed sets and a real sense of time and
place. The cast is absolutely remarkable - particularly Adjani, who captures Margots
inner world perfectly. Auteuil and Anglade are as compelling as always, and while Perez
doesnt have as well-drawn a character to play with, he conveys the necessary desire
and determination perfectly."
Newsday:
" Filled to the brim with dramatic family confrontations, death-bed scenes, poisoned
books, sex, redemption and expert scenery chewing. Every moment is riveting, every actor
gives his all. Particularly good are Lisi, Daniel Auteuil as Margot's hapless husband,
Henri of Navarre; Jean-Hugues Anglade as the quite demented Charles IX , and Vincent
Perez as Margot's hot-blooded beloved, La Mole."
San Diego Union-Tribune:
" Chereau, also an actor, and a proven master of stage and opera, is intoxicated by
bodies in motion. He lets us feel them moving inside lavish costumes, in clothes that
often come ripping off... Adjani, who hardly appears to have aged since her star arrival
in The Story of Adele H., pours into Margot her unrivaled fierceness and purity
of line, and with Perez makes a splendid coupling couple."
National Review:
"Adjani, at 39, is as pretty and pouty as ever, treading the borderline between
provocative and provoking with her customary nimbleness. And she does act, as does the
entire cast, with enthusiasm and an aristocratic contempt for bourgeois restraint. Daniel
Auteuil is a nervily earthy Henri IV; Jean-Hugues Anglade, a wonderfully weak and confused
Charles IX; Vincent Perez, a handsome and virile leading man; and Virna
Lisi, a vicious Catherine de' Medici luckily without a mustache, else she would be
twirling it."
James Berardinelli:
"The ageless Isabelle Adjani, one of France's most beautiful faces, has an undeniable
screen presence. And, with his lean, well-toned body and finely-sculpted features, Vincent
Perez is equally pleasing to the eye... For those who appreciate bigger-than-life
historical sagas, Chereau's entry is often impressive and almost always
entertaining."
NY Times:
"The good news about Queen Margot is that Mr. Chereau creates an atmosphere
in which his actors' flamboyance can be entertaining. Ms. Adjani is decked out gloriously
to play the very young Margot, a raven-haired vision described by Dumas as a French
national treasure... The man she finds, the Comte Joseph-Hyacinthe Boniface de Lerac de la
Mole (Vincent Perez), is presented as so noble a figure that religious
music sanctifies each Margot-La Mole love scene."
Hartford Courant:
"A fascinating tapestry...Queen Margot finely evokes medieval Paris,
with its narrow gray streets and cold, paneled royal chambers... La Mole, an impoverished
Protestant, becomes the great love of Margot's life after a one-night stand (literally) in
an alley. Vincent Perez, who looks like Jimmy Smits with a Jean-Paul
Belmondo nose, endows him with requisite dash and smoldering sensuality."
Critic Pedro Sena:
"A great film... Isabelle Adjani is excellent, in an impossible role, as is Vincent
Perez as her lover. The rest of the cast is well suited, and all the visible
characters are well rehearsed and well designed. It's hard to find something out of
place."
"It is a bit special for me
as I am part of Patrice's family. I was his pupil at Amandiers and I have worked with him
a lot; thus, Queen Margot is a continuation of this work."
"It's a good story because the characters are much like today's people. The romance
between Margot and La Mole is exaggerated. No one knows for sure how complicated their
love life was."
"I did three months of fencing before the shooting to prepare for
a big fight scene, and then the fight was cut! Three months, two hours every day and the
fight is cut! I do a little swordplay in the movie, but the one you see in the movie took
only a week to prepare."
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Cast:
Isabelle Adjani.......Queen Margot
Daniel Auteuil........ Henri of Navarre
Jean-Hugues Anglade......... Charles IX
Vincent Perez.........La Mole
Virna Lisi.........Catherine of Medici
Dominique Blanc........ Henriette of Nevers
Claudio Amendola.........Coconnas
Miguel Bose.......... Guise
Jean-Claude Brialy.........Coligny
Credits:
Directed by..........Patrice Chereau
Screenplay by.........Daniele Thompson and Patrice Chereau based on the book by
Alexandre Dumas
Cinematography by........Philippe Rousselot
Music by..........Goran
Bregovic
Premiere Date in France
Mary 13, 1994
AWARDS & NOMINATIONS
Winner of the 1994 Cannes Film Festival Jury Prize and Best Actress
Award (Virna Lisa)
Nominated for Best Costume Design by the Academy Awards
Nominated for Best Foreign Film by the Golden Globes
Nominated for 11 Cesars. Won 5:
Actress - Isabelle Adjani
Male Supporting Role - Jean-Hugues Anglade
Female Supporting role - Virna Lisi
Cinematogaphy
Costume Design
Production Photos
Publicity Photos
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