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Si Versailles m'était conté
1954 History / Drama
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Credits
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Director: Sacha Guitry
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Script: Sacha Guitry
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Photo: Pierre Montazel
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Music: Jean Françaix, Freres Andrieu, Alexandre Artus, Albert Gossez, Marius Joseph Millot, Claude Balbastre
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Cast: Michel Auclair (Jacques Damiens),
Jean-Pierre Aumont (Le cardinal de Rohan),
Jean-Louis Barrault (Fénelon),
Jeanne Boitel (Madame de Sevigné),
Gilbert Bokanowski (Louis XVI),
Bourvil (Un guide du musée de Versailles),
Gino Cervi (Cagliostro),
Jean Chevrier (Turenne),
Aimé Clariond (Rivarol),
Claudette Colbert (Madame de Montespan),
Danièle Delorme (Louison Chabray),
Daniel Gélin (Jean Collinet),
Fernand Gravey (Molière),
Sacha Guitry (Louis XIV),
Pierre Larquey (Un guide du musée de Versailles),
Jean Marais (Louis XV),
Lana Marconi (Marie-Antoinette),
Mary Marquet (Madame de Maintenon),
Gaby Morlay (Madame de la Motte),
Gisèle Pascal (Louise de la Vallière),
Jean-Claude Pascal (Axel de Fersen),
Édith Piaf (Une fille du peuple),
Gérard Philipe (D'Artagnan),
Micheline Presle (Madame de Pompadour),
Jean Richard (Du Croisy),
Tino Rossi (Le gondolier),
Jean Tissier (Le guide du musée
de Versailles),
Charles Vanel (Monsieur de Vergennes),
Orson Welles (Benjamin Franklin),
Jean Desailly (Marivaux),
Brigitte Bardot (Mademoiselle de Rozille)
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Country: France
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Language: French
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Runtime: 165 min
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Aka: Affairs in Versailles; Fabulous Versailles; Royal Affairs in Versailles
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Summary
What tales the château of Versailles could tell us if its walls could speak…
From the halcyon days of excess and grandeur under the reign of the "sun king" Louis XIV,
to the tragic years of the French Revolution which brought an ignoble end to the French
monarchy… From the intrigue of Madame de Montespan to the genius of Molière…
So many stories to tell, so many lives to remember...
Review
Towards the end of his career, writer and film director Sacha Guitry made three major
historical films, each of which earned him critical acclaim and each of which has retained
an enduring popularity. Si Versailles m'était conté is arguably the
best of the three, although its sister films Si
Paris nous était conté and Napoléon
are also highly regarded by many. All three films are lavish, well-scripted
episodic historical films, featuring a dizzying cast of France’s best-known actors.
As the title suggests, Si Versailles m'était conté tells the life
of the château of Versailles, the magnificent royal palace built by Louis XIV just
outside Paris - which now serves as a Mecca for tourists of all nationalities and the
set for innumerable period dramas. Instead of making this a heavy historical drama,
Guitry tells the history of the palace in the form of a visual poem, through a naturally
flowing series of sketches.
As in the other two historical frescos, Guitry is able to call upon an unprecedented cast
of some of France’s finest film actors (to which we must add Orson Welles). Jean
Marais, Jean-Louis Barrault, Gérard Philipe and Micheline Presle are just some
of the stars of the period who make this a sumptuous theatrical feast. Guitry himself
appears in the film in the part of an ageing Louis XIV, appropriately looking back on
his glorious past as he faces the final curtain.
© James Travers 2003
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