La Fille de d’Artagnan (1994)

La Fille de d’Artagnan is a French adventure film first released in 1994, directed by Bertrand Tavernier and Riccardo Freda.  The film stars Sophie Marceau, Philippe Noiret, Claude Rich, Sami Frey and Jean-Luc Bideau.  It has also been released under the title: D’Artagnan’s Daughter.  Our overall rating for this film is: mediocre.


In 1645, Eloise, the daughter of the great swordmaster D’Artagnan, lives in a monastery in southern France.  One night, the monastery is disturbed by nobles pursing an escaped negro slave.  In the melee, the Mother Superior is killed.  Eloise suspects a conspiracy and rides to Paris to see her father, accompanied by a young poet, Quentin.  At first, D’Artagnan is reluctant to take up his daughter’s call to arms, but he agrees when he realises that the king’s life is at stake.  After all, it provides a long over due excuse to meet up with his former comrades, the three Musketeers, Athos and Porthos and Aramis.  Although long in the tooth and grey-haired, the lust for adventure is still there, albeit somewhat tempered by rheumatism and haemorrhoids...

This was never going to be as fast-moving and as action-packed as previous films in the Three Musketeers mould – not with the leading protagonists now in their mid-fifties.  However, despite some admirable production values (the photography is excellent), the film never really seems to get going, and the fight scenes appear half-hearted and overly choreographed.

Given that this is advertised as being a film about D’Artagnan’s daughter, it is a bit disappointing to see how small a part the daughter in question has to play in the film.   It all starts out well, with Sophie Marceau throwing herself into the part with a gusto, launching into a brief but well-managed fight scene (the best of the film) within the first twenty minutes.  But all too soon, Miss D’Artagnan goes it alone and is captured by the villain of the piece, thereafter forced to play the damsel in distress until daddy turns up to rescue her.  So much for women’s lib.  Luckily, D’Artagnan’s daughter manages to redeem herself – partly – in the final fight scene – although it is (of course) daddy who saves her in the end (again).

Probably the best thing about the film is its wry, self-deprecating humour.  Philippe Noiret’s mildly lugubrious persona and dry wit is well suited to the part of the decrepit D’Artagnan, even if his skill with a sword looks a bit questionable.

© James Travers 2000

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