Film Review
After pursuing a successful career as a master glassmaker for many years,
André Hunebelle suddenly discovered a passion for filmmaking in the
late 1940s and within a decade he was the most consistently successful filmmaker
France had ever known. Hunebelle's first box office hit was
Les Trois mousquetaires
(1953), a lavish adaptation of the famous Alexandre Dumas classic that instantly
made the swashbuckler a fantastically popular genre in French cinema.
Confident of repeating this success, the director followed up with more of
the same,
Cadet Rousselle
(1954), before helming what would be the biggest hit of his career,
Le Bossu.
Attracting an audience of just under six million,
Le Bossu came along
at just the right time for its lead actor Jean Marais, who had acquired prominence
through his association with Jean Cocteau - notably on the films
La Belle et la bête
(1946) and
Orphée (1949) - but
who was now badly in need of a career boost. With his heroic profile,
solid frame and athletic prowess, Jean Marais was perfectly suited to play
the swashbuckling action hero, and he had no qualms about performing his
own stunts (even though he was by now in his mid-forties).
It was on the back of the success of
Le Bossu that Jean Marais had
his triumphant second wind, becoming a massive box office draw in a succession
of big budget period pieces. These alternated more seriously minded
productions, such as Jean Delannoy's
La Princesse de Clèves
(1961), with crowdpleasing action romps like Pierre Gaspard-Huit's
Le Capitaine Fracasse
(1961) and Hunebelle's
Le Miracle
des loups (1961).
Le Bossu paired Marais with another notable talent, Bourvil, who
first found fame as a comedy performer but would soon become one of the most
popular movie actors of his generation. Bourvil had worked with Hunebelle
previously on
Cadet Rousselle and was glad to be offered a similar
role in
Le Bossu, one that suited his 'country bumpkin' persona at
the time. The pairing of such contrasting personalities as Bourvil
and Jean Marais was both inspired and a hit with audiences, and it led Hunebelle
to give the double act a second outing in
Le Capitan (1960), which
was his third most popular film (5.2 million spectators).
In stark contrast to Marais's subsequent pairing with another comedy giant
(Louis de Funès) in Hunebelle's
Fantômas
films, the actors play off one another to great effect, although the film
could probably have done without the ill-judged musical numbers intended
to capitalise on Bourvil's popularity as a comic singer. Guy Delorme
and Lise Delamare are the only standout performers in a cast of mostly forgotten
actors, not surprisingly as the film was intended to be a showcase for its
two leads.
Le Capitan is not the most memorable of swashbucklers from this era,
although it achieves a harmonious balance of comedy and bravura action-adventure,
with set-piece fight scenes that are every bit as impressive as those in comporable
Hollywood productions of this time. Taken from a novel of the same
title by Michel Zévaco, the plot tends to become tangled in a few
places, but the unflagging pace and good-natured fun of the production carry
it through, making it perfect entertainment for any family audience.
© James Travers 2019
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Next André Hunebelle film:
Le Miracle des loups (1961)
Film Synopsis
France, 1616. After the assassination of Henri IV, the queen mother
Marie de Médicis governs France in the name of the young king, Louis
XIII. In this, she is assisted by her devoted minister, Concino Concini,
who, encouraged by his ambitious wife, intends seizing the reins of power
for himself. To this end, Concini invokes a reign of terror that is
felt all across the country, strengthening his powerbase by ruthlessly crushing
all opposition in Paris and the provinces. Concini plans to depose Louis
and replace him with another pretender to the throne, one who will be much
more amenable to his personal ambitions.
One of Concini's victims is the Marquis de Teynac. When the latter's
castle comes under attack a brave young sword master, François de Capestan,
comes to his aid. In the ensuing tussle, the marquis is slain and the
resourceful chevalier is badly wounded. Had it not been for the intervention
of a mysterious brown-haired woman, François would surely have perished
there.
Once he has recovered, François attends a meeting of nobles to agree
a plan of action against the villainous Concini. En route for Paris
to lend his services to the king, François meets a likeable strolling
player, Cogolin, who soon proves to be a dependable ally. Together,
the two men resume their journey and are soon caught up in a series of adventures
that take them ever closer to their formidable adversary, the eternally wicked
Concini...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.