Genres

Visitors Review

2012-05-18 06:36:50

excellent

A friend loaned this to me a few days ago; said that I would enjoy it. I was dubious--how on earth was a movie based around the nuances of wordplay going to translate? Well, whoever was in charge of subtitling this one did a great job--a few minutes in, I forgot that I was hearing French and reading English. Not a big fan of costume dramas or romances, but this one is an exception.

anonymous 2012-05-17 10:14:33

A little jewel of French cinema

This movie should be seen in its original language version.The actors are great and the plot interesting, but what makes this movie sogood are the dialogues. In fact, we have here a piece of art in dialoguewriting. The subtlety of the French language is well used and, each time yousee this movie, you find something new in the conversations.A has-to-be-seen movie for whom fancies the French language.

lindseybeloved 2012-05-08 05:39:54

Oh France

I picked up this French film from the library knowing nothing about it.The first scene was shocking, and I didn't know whether I was up forit. I'm not squeamish or grossed out by many things. I mean, I've seenanother Frenchie called "Irreversible," but it wasn't THAT kind ofshock. Okay I'm going to ruin it. A guy urinates on another guy, and itshows it...pee and all. Anyway, I stuck it out (no pun intended), andthe movie turned out to be funny and moving in the end. The acting,writing, and visual style were all great. If you can find it, give it awatch. It's a good example of French humor, which is far different thanAmerican humor and far more enlightening.

2012-05-07 23:54:28

The Great Disconnect-Aristocrats and Common People=Revolution

This review is from: Ridicule (DVD) This is a wonderful depiction of the consequences of a massive disconnect between the "haves" and "have nots" in a society. The consequences of the great disconnect in the France of Louis XVI are amply documented in history books. The movie is beautifully shot as a historical period piece. The cinematography is lush and sensual in its tone. It's message, however, is not confined to the time period.Charles Berling, as Le Marquis Grégoire Ponceludon de Malavoy, is the French equivalent of an English country squire. The peasants on his estate are dying of diseases cause by a mosquito-infested swamp on his estate. He goes to Versailles to petition the king for funds to drain the swamp and save the lives of his peasants.He arrives naively thinking that a straightforward discussion of the merits of his engineering project will win him the necessary funds. He is soon disabused of that notion by the disdainful bureaucrats who inhabit different wings of the Versailles castle. By chance he is fortunately taken under the wing of an experienced doctor and courtier, Le Marquis de Bellegarde, played by the excellent Jean Rochefort.The doctor tutors de Malavoy in the ways of the court, where only wit and ridicule matter. De Malavoy finds that the only way to obtain funds for a practical project like draining a swamp is to become a favorite at court, where one must must be witty and lucky rather than smart and good. De Malavoy sets out to accomplish his practical goal which can only be achieved by engaging in an absurd gamesmanship wholly unrelated to dying peasants or the general good. Wit gains favor and funding, ridicule results in banishment from the court. De Malavoy is fortunate to have the wit necessary to thrive at court and to catch the attention of one of the king's beautiful courtesans, Madame de Blayac, played by the gorgeous Fanny Ardant. Madame can make or break him. His relationship with her and the doctor's beautiful daughter, Mathilde (Judith Godreche), is the pivot point of the story. De Malavoy is called upon to put means over the end in order to save his loyal peasantry.You will have to see the movie to discover whether de Malavoy is able to finally drain the swamp. History shows, of course, that the swamp that was Louis XVI's court was eventually drained; by the ridiculed peasants of the French Revolution. The corruption and cynicism of a dying regime and its court are wonderfully captured in "Ridicule". Both history and art are well-served in this movie.

2012-05-01 22:15:26

The Mystique of Wit and Ridicule

The first time we glimpse Madame de Blayac (Fanny Arendt)she is naked and servants are blowing white powder all over her body and face to give her the semblance of a flawless complexion. We do not know it yet but this may as well be a war painting ceremony. She and her accomplice, the appropriately named L'Abbe de Vilecourt, are two of Versailles most powerful and viscious social figures. If they decide that you are witty then you are invited to become a part of their coterie, but if you are dull then they heap their ridicule on you in one of their public disgracing ceremonies. Madame de Blayac and Vilecourt seem to thrive on their capacity for cruelty; it is the measure of their power. Into this world trots an unsuspecting young country lord named Malavoy (Charles Berling) who desperately needs funds to drain the swamps on his estate to prevent his peasants from dying of mosquito related illnesses. The only chance he has of receiving the necessary funds is if he can gain an audience with the king. However, a whole world of courtly proprieties stand between Malavoy and the king. In short, to get to the king Malavoy must negotiate Madame de Blayac's and Vilecourt's crucible of wit. With his natural gift for verbal display Malavoy immediately impresses Madame de Blayac and her circle but she is not the type to do anything for anybody unless she gets something out of it herself and it soon becomes clear to Malavoy that Madame de Blayac will require that he tend to her private as well as her public pleasures and in return she will see to it that he get his audience with the king. Meanwhile en route between court and country Malavoy is robbed and left for dead on the road. A country doctor (Jean Rochefort) finds him and helps him to recover at his country estate where Malavoy falls immediately smitten with the doctor's beautiful daughter Mathilde (Judith Godreche). Malavoy and Mathilde immediately hit it off despite the fact that the teenage Mathilde is in the process of negotiating a marriage with a man five times her age. But as soon as Malavoy is healthy enough he must return to the court in order to press his case once again and that means a return to the courts vices and follies and, of course, to Madame de Blayac. As far as Malavoy is concerned as soon as he has his chance to present his case to the king his obligation to Madame de Blayac will be over but Malavoy does not realize that the game is over only when Madame de Blayac says it is over. And once Madame de Blayac discovers that Malavoy has a woman in the country her revenge is swift.Malavoy's natural wit shines against the opulent artificial surfaces of Versailles and he defeats the overly crafted wit of Vilecourt time and again but we fear that these are only small skirmishes in a war of the wits that he cannot win. We just hope that Malavoy will be able to escape this vile world before its too late. The most interesting scenes show a Malavoy that is not immune to the allures of court life, wealth and power and even of Madame de Blayac. And it is in these scenes that we wonder just how far he will go to get what he wants and whether there will ever be any turning back once he gets there. We see a secession of lords and barons who have their own cases to plead ridiculed and turned away and we know Malavoy's turn will eventually come, for ridicule is the courts way of keeping the insiders in and the outsiders out and Malavoy is only a guest in this world. The ending is a surprise. It comes a little abruptly and yet it also seems perfect. The mystique of wit and ridicule (of arbitrary power or power exercised arbitrarily, and of the snobberies of high society) haunts the minds of those who were wounded as well as wowed by it even after the regime that sponsored it has vanished.

2012-05-01 16:31:56

Literate and wicked

Ridicule is a French film which takes place in 1783, a few years before Louis XVI lost the ability to wear a hat; where "...in this country, vices are without consequence, but ridicule can kill." The film is about the effect of wit and word play on people's lives and careers. Malicious, mannered and highly enjoyable. Charles Berling, Jean Rochefort, Bernard Giraudeau and Fanny Ardant are excellent. A man would be a fool not to want to bed Ardant, and even more a fool to trust her. The film is sumptuously mounted and the DVD transfer does it justice. The dialogue is so clever a knowledge of French might be in order, but the English subtitles do a superb job of conveying the witty, cruel, self-serving word play.

davidguy 2012-04-25 10:17:03

Gem of subtlety

I have seen this film recently on video after having missed it at thecinemaand on TV. I knew it would be all about cruelty of words and superficialityof elites. Indeed, this film is a true gem, very well played, sharp andquick. It tells the story of a young provincial nobleman discovering theVersailles Court as he tries to get funding for his project. What he findswill lead the nobility to its brutal end 6 years later: futility,self-conceit, disinterest to the people's problems, superficiality ofrelationships (all of which still pervade it modern French elite, to somerespects as was evident from revelations of Mitterrand's shamefulreign).Of course the political message is important. But equally if not moreimportant -or pleasurable- are the dialogues. French can be so brutal,insidious, cruel, tortured, witty when used a propos that I'm not sure thenon-French speakers could get the most of the dialogues. Certainly theabsolutely brilliant rhymes contest would be somehow lost in Englishsubtitles. A very good 9/10 for this movie, and a bit less if you don't getthe dialogues.

Lawrence C 2012-04-24 15:26:30

the nasty French

a nasty French film about French aristocrats being nasty to each other. These bored people have competitions to see who can come up with the most cutting insults, or "ridicule" -- nice, eh?If anybody has any questions about what a miserable bunch the French are, here is a good movie to explain it.I usually think it is wrong to spoil movies, but the opening scene was such a class act: shows a guy whipping it out and p****** on .. well OK, I won't give everything away

whatdoes1know 2012-04-24 17:31:05

French uppity aristocracy back with a vengeance.

Refreshing perspective on aristocratic code of honor fares better atcaptivating audience than the sumptuous breasts of Judith Godreche or thelove innuendo advertised on the movie's jacket--which is just an excuse forthe rest of the film: turns of exquisitely ridiculous moments and unblinkingvicious cruelty. The seriousness of the matter is well-carved out, andalthough the nature of the story is comical, the end product is flavoredwith melancholy. I remember Jam being a fresh movie which in the same way asthis one took the art of verbal communication to a level beyond meredialogue, and essentially a driving force for the movie.8/10

2012-04-23 21:47:35

Smart, funny and stylish - a great intro to foreign films

'Ridicule' is a wonderful French film I rented and have enjoyed time and time again, even with some friends who hate films that they have to "read." If you dislike foreign films or films with captions, you're missing out if you haven't seen "Ridicule." Lavish costumes, great sets, and the attention paid to detail regarding the period are all incredible. Enjoy this sexy and intelligent romp through the bedrooms, the social politics, and the court of pre-revolutionary France where verbal reparte could make or break one's social standing. A definite thumbs up.

2012-04-22 19:27:40

Overrated not funny

The plot of the film is simple. A provincial nobleman wants to clear some swamps to help the poor old peasants of his area. The existence of the swamps leads to disease and a shortage of arable land. Attempts are made to get money from the government but to no avail. Our intrepid hero decides that he will join the court of Louis the XVI to try to swing some influence. We are told that the key to advancing at court is the ability to have a malicous wit. To be able to ridicule others in an amusing way. Our hero is said to have this ability so he decides to cash in on it. At a number of dinners he lashes out at the others and his reputation grows. In the end he is not able to gain the influence necessary. However this does not matter as the French Revolution intervenes and instead of having a corrupt government of thickie royalists the people are willing to put a bit of money into swamp drainage. The main problem with the film is that it isn't very funny and none of the charcters have good lines. The wit is of the plodding kind " I say that is a portrait of the Duke on his horse but it is hard to say who of the two is smarter (guffaw guffaw)" being but one of the more shinning examples. If we leave aside that rather major hick up the film is a reasonable satire of the stupidity of a feudal court based on patronage. The acting and style, it being a French film are all strong. Not the worst film ever made but if you take the title seriously you will be disappointed.

2012-04-22 10:56:11

Beautiful Costume Drama

Set in the court of King Louis XVI, a young country baron, Ponceludon, travels to Versailles seeking the support of the king to rid his lands of the festering marshes that plague them. What Ponceludon soon learns is that access to the king is granted either through political connections or through wit - the ability to impress the court with cutting verbal prowess. He eventually beds the influential and politically powerful Madame de Blayac to gain access to the court. But to survive there Ponceludon must match his wits with the more ambitious and nefarious nobles who plot against him. Wit, he finds, is not so much about humor as it is about power, cruelty and inflicting insults. In the era of King Louis XVI wit is more valued than intellect. "Ridicule" is a 5-star delight to watch. Wonderfully told, superbly acted and beautifully filmed. This is one film that stimulates the intellect while pleasing the eye.

Julie 2012-04-21 17:52:46

Ridicule: anything but

An interesting combination of courtlife and personal drama with interesting filming. It leaves one wondering: where do you stand with your friends? I like the film, however the beginning was not needed. As foreign films go, I liked this but I like the movie "Come agua para chocolate" better.

2012-04-21 05:47:41

A historian's viewpoint

This movie gives a great portrayal of eighteenth-century court intrigues and culture. Many people don't know just how insane life could be during that time, especially for the upper classes. Seeing this film will give one a clue as to how French courtiers lived in the days before the Revolution. I suggest starting with this film, then moving on to other, more esoteric works if you want to begin a journey into eighteenth-century France.

slmiller-1 2012-04-20 23:12:50

Makes it easy to understand why majority of French citizens lead horrific lives

ONLY ONE SPOILER: When I searched the internet for reviews of thismovie, I found several reviews by male movie reviewers who seemed tofeel outrage, shock and disgust at the opening scene. I thought tomyself, how bad could this be? I mean, what DON'T they show in moviesthese days? Should I allow my teenage children to see the film? WhatWAS this scene, and were there more like it? No review was specific asto answering my questions, so my husband and I watched it alone. Hereis what that one scene is: A rather graphic scene (zoomed in andlasting a couple of seconds) of a nobleman's genitalia as he isurinating on an aged, disabled nobleman who had ridiculed him some 30years earlier. Perhaps the outrage, shock and disgust felt by thesemale reviewers was due to the fact that instead of the typical femalenudity we see everywhere in movies, for once we saw graphic malenudity. Who would've thought men to be so prudish? Now, before all youmen out there attempt to perform your own version of witty repartee'and strike back at these comments, allow me to add that yes, while thisone scene was graphic and shocking, that it was not done for the sakeof shock, but rather to show what lengths people in positions of powerwent to in order to "protect" their own positions and sabotage that ofothers, ranging from ridicule and humiliation to violence and death.While I do not condone gratuitous nudity for the sake of pornography, Ido feel this one scene accurately sets the tone of the tale and hasmeaning in it's ending.For some time I could not understand how the plight of so many Frenchcitizens could be so desperate and full of starvation and death whilethe wealthy did not suffer the same fate, and why nobody did anythingto change this. If the portrayal of those in positions of power andwealth in this movie was depicted accurately, it is easy to understandhow a once great country failed it's citizens when power and choice washeld by those who were selfish, lazy, and possibly worse - silly. KingLouis XVI has been written to be by many accounts, a man not able torule, passive, indifferent to those around him near and far, and unableto repair the damage done by his predecessors, especially King LouisXIV when also abandonment of reason and over indulgence were the ruleof the day.Along with the beautiful countryside, architecture and decor, costumes(couldn't they give "poor" Mathilde more than two dresses to wearduring the entire film?) and great depiction of human nature and ourinherent weaknesses, this movie was very entertaining and for me muchmore enjoyable than "Valmont"/"Dangerous Liaisons" to which it has beencompared. While "Valmont"/"Dangerous Liaisions" also contained theabove attributes, "Ridicule" contained an important element they didnot - well developed characters and plot.

Neossir 2012-04-20 07:01:05

Dubitative about this movie. Some great ideas but...

One of the most terrible thing in the movie is, in my opinion, the badacting of Charles Berling, and the very bad acting of Judith Godrèche.They're romance is not very well exposed, except maybe the scene of theknee underlined by Steve Rhodes in his review.The rituals in the french court, the manners, the languages' game areinteresting. The dialogs are pretty well written. There are some greatscenes, like the one of the duel. Some characters are well played,first of all the Jean Rochefort character, very moving. BernardGiraudeau is also great, and Fanny Ardant as well (but I have apersonnel problem with her acting in general).The systematic construction between the scenes is a bit annoying, aswell as the "false" return of Grégoire in the middle, before his"too-much predictable" come-back.The movie is alright, the directing correct (sometimes great), but itmisses something to make it a film I'd like to see again.

2012-04-17 18:04:18

It might not be about the jokes...

This review is from: Ridicule [VHS] (VHS Tape) This film works best if you consider the possibility that the examples of "rapier wit" used in the film are deliberately stilted, and deliberately fall a little flat. I believe the film would have collapsed if it had tried to hang its success on the very same issue that it's criticizing. It's perfect, in my mind, as it is: a scathing portrait of a strata of society that believes itself to be the most clever, the most acerbic, the most malevolently brilliant, which is not at all the same thing as actually BEING the most clever, the most acerbic, etc. Know what I mean?

2012-04-17 05:08:59

Fantastic film

Hmmm, not sure why it's referred to as a book, so I hope this review shows up along with the actual video. 'Ridicule' is a brilliant film, in French, that details the quest of a idealistic nobleman as he confronts the ways of Louis XIV's court. Gregoire Ponceludon de Malavoy wishes to see the king regarding important matters, vital to the survival of his peasants, but soon learns that court is a place where men concern themselves with matters that Ponceludon considers trivial, and where all priority is placed one's wit. There's a bit of romance tossed in as well. Overall, a great film that was nominated for the 1997 best foreign language picture Oscar (lost to 'Kolya'- a delightful little Czech film). Definitely worth renting at the very least, but very enjoyable to watch over again. END

2012-04-11 23:15:02

Fable, NOT Dry Execise

Although the dialogue may be exquisite, in French, the tale is about the emptiness of all that, of course. Is it true that, once upon a time, French cinemas played "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" endlessly until occupying Germans flatly forbade such subversion? It could be. Works just fine with subtitles. Wonderful stuff.

2012-04-11 08:31:51

A thematic historical movie. Ironical and brilliant

Leconte Hasn't made this historical movie to show how much he was able to spend in silk dresses and XVIIIth century furniture. His movie is its title. It's a kind of essay on this theme, but don't be afraid by the word "essay" : intelligent doesn't mean boring in this movie. What I mean is that there is a strong idea behind the historical scenes. This is why Leconte's movie might be compared to Kubrick's "Barry Lindon", even if it is closer from a comedy.