Underplayed Gems

Marquise (1997)

Marquise poster
Directed by
Véra Belmont
Genre
drama film, comedy film, historical film
Country
France, Switzerland, Italy, Spain
Runtime
2h
Rated
18A
Rating
5.5 of 10 from 53 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
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How it feels

A poor dancer and actress rises to fame in 17th century France, winning the affections of powerful men including King Louis XIV. A comic actor marries her and brings her to Paris to start her career, and she remains devoted to him despite other lovers.

glamorousbittersweetlivelyperiodromanticdramaticearthy

What happens

Marquise is a 1997 French dramatic film directed by Véra Belmont, and starring Sophie Marceau, Bernard Giraudeau, and Lambert Wilson. Written by Jean-François Josselin, Véra Belmont, Marcel Beaulieu and Gérard Mordillat, the film is about a dancer and actress, based on the historical actress Marquise-Thérèse de Gorla, who rises from obscurity to win the hearts of some of France's most prominent citizens, including Moliere, Jean Racine, and King Louis XIV. She is helped in her career by a rotund comic, who falls in love with her, marries her, and brings her to Paris to launch her career. Despite her intimate involvement with other men, she keeps a special place in her heart reserved only for her unlikely spouse. Set in seventeenth century France, the film was shot on location in Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna, Italy, from September through December 1996. Marquise was released on 20 August 1997 in France, and on 12 September 1997 in the United States. The film received generally positive reviews, with Variety magazine's Lisa Nesselson calling it "entertaining without being taxing", and Paul Fischer on the Urban Cinefile website calling it "masterful entertainment on a grand scale, an intelligent and fascinating insight into 17th century French society". Marquise was nominated for the AFI Fest Grand Jury Prize, the British Independent Film Award for Best Foreign Independent Film, and the César Award for Best Music. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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