Film Review
By the mid-1950s, the anthology film had become a popular staple of French
cinema, offering audiences the irresistible prospect of watching several
short films (usually featuring some of the biggest stars of the day) for
the price of one cinema ticket.
Destinées (a.k.a.
Daughters
of Destiny) is one such film, although it is hardly the best example
of its genre as it lacks a strong enough overarching theme to link the component
segments together into a satisfying whole. Also, the massive difference
in tone and style between the three segments making up this film jars somewhat.
By accident or by design, the result is one of the ungainliest portmanteau
films of its kind.
A sombre reflection on the last war, an overblown historical pageant and
a ludicrous Greek farce - this is the odd triptych that
Destinées
serves up for us, with more star power than it knows what to do with.
The film starts on a bafflingly weird note with an introduction from a man
in silhouette who claims to be Destiny but then promptly tells us
we
are the ones who make our own destiny - not the most well-thought out of
introductions. The film begins proper on a dour note with a neorealist
excursion to post-war Italy, with Marcello Pagliero directing Claudette Colbert
in one of her rare French film outings as a widow hoping to find out something
of her husband's last fateful moments, only to find these last fateful moments
involved a pretty teenager and a nocturnal frolic in a barn.
Jean Delannoy takes over with the middle section, which is a predictably
dry and sober period piece presenting a scene from the life of Joan of Arc.
Despite the fact that Michèle Morgan is at least ten years too old
to be convincing as the Maid of Orleans she holds our attention as only she
can and makes this the anthology's winning segment, helped by some suitably
atmospheric set design and lighting. The whole thing then goes to pot
with a vengeance with the concluding segment, a ludicrous take on an Aristophanes
play which director Christian-Jaque and his writer Henri Jeanson completely
ruin through a surfeit of crude comedy that is below the standard of the
worst
Carry On film. Not even the stunning Martine Carol (overacting
for all it is worth) can salvage this comic travesty, although the scene
where she and her Attic women's lib cohorts tie an unsuspecting Raf Vallone
to a gate at least gets a grudging giggle. Hard to believe, but not
long before this Christian-Jaque directed quite a good portmanteau film -
Souvenirs perdus (1950).
Whilst it does have a few things going for it,
Destinées falls
somewhat short of being a satisfying anthology offering. In fact it
is merely a clumsily bolted together collection of ill-fitting sketches that
struggle to make an impact individually and collectively look like a disaster.
© James Travers, Willems Henri 2016
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Next Christian-Jaque film:
Madame du Barry (1954)
Film Synopsis
Throughout history, women have had to play their part in war, and in doing
so have had to forge their own destinies. After WWII, an American war
widow, Elisabeth Whitefield, undertakes a painful journey to a servicemen's
cemetery in Italy to reclaim her husband Tony's body and arrange its repatriation.
Curious to find out more about how her husband met his death at the hands
of the Germans, Elisabeth strikes up a friendship with a local Italian woman,
Angela, who briefly gave him shelter. Elisabeth is surprised to find
that Angela has a young son that she has named Antonio. She soon puts
two and two together and realises that the boy is the product of a liaison
between her husband and the Italian peasant girl.
In April 1430, Joan of Arc is beginning to lose the confidence of her troops
and has become doubtful about her divine mission. Arriving at a farm
with her weary army, she finds a mother in a desolate state after her newborn
baby died without first having been baptised. When Joan holds the dead
baby, it is briefly restored to life and the baptism can take place.
Joan and her followers see this as a sign that God is still on their side.
Encouraged, they ride on to their next battle, not knowing it will be their
last. In 411 BC, Athens is still prosecuting its seemingly endless
war against Sparta. Having grown tired of this interminable conflict,
Lysistrata, the wife of the Athenian general Callias, galvanises opposition
to the war amongst the women of the city and together they agree to withhold
their husbands' conjugal rights until the fighting is over. Realising
that, given the choice, making love is preferable to making war, the Athenians
finally decide the time has come to make peace with Sparta...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.