Le Bon roi Dagobert (1963)

Le Bon roi Dagobert is a French film comedy first released in 1963, directed by Pierre Chevalier.  The film stars Fernandel, Gino Cervi, Darío Moreno and Marthe Mercadier.  It has also been released under the title: Good King Dagobert.  Our overall rating for this film is: mediocre.


Schoolboy Robert’s punishment for not paying attention in class is to write a 100 line essay on Dagobert, the celebrated medieval King of France.  Allowing his imagination to run wild, Robert sees his father as a benign Dagobert, a king whose main preoccupations are collecting wives and securing his place in history.  Dagobert’s plans to crown his son at Reims are threatened by his scheming rival, Charibert, who has regal ambitions of his own…

Although nearing the end of his remarkable film career, comic actor Fernandel still had what it took to enliven a lacklustre comedy and draw a large cinema audience.  Le Bon roi Dagobert is a schoolboy’s comic book reinterpretation of history, in much the same vein as the earlier Fernandel offering François Premier (1937).  Shot in Rome, the film has some impressive production values, but it should have been made in colour and its cast – which includes some very talented actors – deserve a far better script.  Popular Italian actor Gino Cervi stars along side Fernandel – the two had previously worked together on the Don Camillo series of films over the past decade.  Although popular in its day, the film now feels flat and dated, although there are a few moments of great comedy – notably Pascale Roberts’ easy seduction of Fernandel, Jacques Dufilho in drag and Darry Cowl’s hilarious turn as a punctillious executioner.

© James Travers 2007

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