Film Review
After having directed two modest but very well-received comedies -
Pinot
simple flic (1984) and
Scout toujours... (1985) -
Gérard Jugnot snatched up the gauntlet of an altogether more
ambitious project - a lavish historical production recounting the
valiant exploits of the legendary 15th Century hero Chevalier de Bayard, a.k.a.
le chevalier sans peur et sans
reproche and
le bon chevalier.
With a distinguished cast that includes Jugnot and most of his former
comrades in arms from the celebrated comedy troupe l'Équipe du
Splendid (including Michel Blanc, Josiane Balasko and Anémone),
Sans peur et sans reproche offers
not only the exceptional production values that we would expect of a
French historical drama but an almost endless stream of gags, most of
which are, predictably, in the worst possible taste.
The film's desperate attempts to find humour in the grim realities of
life in the Middle Ages (most of the jokes involve evisceration of one
kind or another) inevitably cause it to resemble
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
(1975), although by being far more restrained in its use of
anachronisms Jugnot's film has a much greater sense of reality and is
nothing like the mad escapist romp that the Python offering is. It
may not be as relentlessly funny as the Python film, but it at least
bears some resemblance to historical fact and may even have you
venturing into the history books or (if you aren't that fussed about accuracy)
onto Wikipedia to find out more
about the heroic Chevalier Bayard and check out how the affable King
Charles VIII of France came to his sticky end. Whilst it offers
far fewer laughs than you would expect from Jugnot and his comedy
cohorts,
Sans peur et sans reproche
works reasonably well as a grotesque parody of the classic historical
epic, although those of a sensitive disposition should be advised that
some of the humour is a little on the gruesome side, to put it
mildly. If you like sick humour
French-style,
this is where you will find it in gore-saturated, crot-encrusted
abundance.
© James Travers 2011
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Next Gérard Jugnot film:
Une époque formidable... (1991)
Film Synopsis
In the late 1400s, King Charles VIII of France sends his armies to
Italy to seize the kingdom of Naples. One of the King's most
devoted captains is Bellabre, who is looking for an opportunity to
redeem himself after being made a laughing stock in a jousting
tournament by a common stable hand Pierre Terrail. When he
is rejected by his lover Blanche, the Duchesse de Savoie, Pierre
enlists in the French army and finds himself under the command of
Bellabre. The latter intends to takes his revenge by exposing
Pierre to the harsh realities of warfare, but only ends up suffering
further humiliations when Pierre, having distinguished himself in
combat, is knighted by the King. When he tries to claim his
beloved Blanche, Pierre, now popularly known as the Knight Without Fear
and Beyond Reproach, discovers he has a dangerous rival in the scheming
Scottomayor...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.