Film Review
Marcel Achard's final directorial fling was this enchanting but wholly
fictitious account of the relationship between Jacques Offenbach,
France's leading purveyor of comic opera, and his leading lady,
Hortense Schneider. Prior to this Achard had directed two other
films -
L'Homme des Folies
Bergère (1935) and
Jean
de la Lune (1949) - but he never achieved the success as a
filmmaker which he had previously enjoyed as a playwright. With
its Second Empire setting,
La Valse
de Paris is more visually interesting, more emotionally engaging
than Achard's previous two films but suffers from the same confining
sense of staginess, implying perhaps that its director regarded cinema
merely as an extension of theatre rather than a totally different kind
of medium.
Despite the enormous liberties that Achard takes with his subject
(which he openly admits in an amusing exchange at the start of the
film),
La Valse de Paris is
one of the most enjoyable of French biopics. It may not be
factually accurate but it provides an enthusiastic celebration of the
work of Offenbach and includes many of his best-loved compositions,
including
Ô mon cher amant, je
te jure from
La
Périchole,
Ah, que
j'aime les militaires from
La
Grande-duchesse de Gérolstein and
Oui c'est un rêve from
La Belle Hélène.
Far from being thrown in willy-nilly (as is so often the case with
musical biopics), the songs are thoughtfully woven into the narrative,
in a way that Offenbach himself may well have approved of. The
composer's most famous piece, the
Can-can from
Orphée aux enfers, even gets
an airing, accompanying a bizarre comic interlude involving military
men rather than high-kicking dancers. It has to be seen to be
believed.
The part of Hortense Schneider was a gift for Yvonne Printemps.
An actress of almost unrivalled charm and charisma, Printemps was also
an accomplished singer and her vocal talents are exploited to the full
by Achard as she gets to sing most of the film's numbers, and does so
superbly. So captivating is the actress that she comes
dangerously close to eclipsing her co-star, Pierre Fresnay, and it is
only by exercising his formidable skills as a character actor that
Fresnay succeeds in holding his own with his amiable, albeit somewhat
eccentric, portrayal of Jacques Offenbach. Achard's well-honed
script has us believe that Offenbach was a comi-tragic figure whose
only love was his work, whilst Schneider is characterised as a
social-climbing man-eater, forever failing to find true love. No
one could ever be taken in by this gross simplification of two complex
individuals, but since when has truth ever got in the way of a good
biopic?
La Valse de Paris
is an affectionate and stylish tribute to the genius of Offenbach, a
delight for anyone who adores his music.
© James Travers 2014
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Film Synopsis
Paris, in the mid-1800s. Hortense Schneider is an aspiring young
actress who is keen to appear in Jacques Offenbach's next
operetta. Through her boyfriend Berthelier she gains an
introduction to the celebrated composer and he is at once won over by
her charm and singing voice. Under Offenbach's tutelage Schneider
becomes an instant star of the Paris stage, but her love life continues
to be one long round of disappointments. Finally, the actress
professes her love for Offenbach, but is this the start of a lasting
romance or merely the beginning of another short-lived infatuation...?
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.