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| Poster courtesy of Roadside Attractions |
Since Edmund Rostand’s “Cyrano de Bergerac” is one of my favorites, I approached the film Cyrano, My Love (France, 2018, French with English subtitles) with high hopes. I am not disappointed. The love of the eloquence of language permeates this wonderful retelling of the tale. There are enough variations from the original play (and the many film adaptations) to make this production unique.
Playwright and director Alexis Michalik reflects upon Rostand's efforts to produce a popular work - any popular work - after his play "La Pricess Lointaine" utterly fails, even though it starred the renowned Sarah Bernhardt (played by Clémentine Célarié). Indeed, one of Rostand's monikers now is "a young poet who writes flops."
This is the starting point of the story. Edmond Rostand (Thomas Solivérès) is commissioned by the famed stage actor Constant Coquelin (Olivier Gourmet) to write and produce a success in order to save Coquelin’s career. Plus, Edmond has to do this in 3 weeks! This is the set-up for a slapstick comedy as Edmond must come up posthaste with a fully formed play, and a comedy, to boot.
In this film, Edmond Rostand’s life parallels the Cyrano story. His handsome but inarticulate friend Leo (Tom Leeb) has a love interest - Jeanne (Lucie Boujenah). As Edmond steps in to improve Leo’s clumsy communications with Jeanne - snap - he conceives the story of a handsome but mumbling Christian mouthing the beautiful words of the odd-looking Cyrano (with his long nasal protuberance) to the lovely Roxanne, words that hold true for both Cyrano and Christian.
In the famed balcony scene (from the original play), where Edmond coaches Leo in his overtures to Jeanne as he and Leo hide in the shadows, Edmond is struck with self-awareness. “Under the cloak of dust I dare to be myself.” But Edmond is naive and insecure. He is compelled to begin letter-writing to Jeanne to develop his ideas about his play. Or is this a kind of love, too?
Jeanne is his muse, to the dismay of Rosemonde (Alice de Lencquesaing), a supportive though increasingly suspicious wife. Side note: Rosemonde Gérard was a poet and playwright herself in 19th century France, not acknowledged in this film. My guess is Michalik needed this stereotypical character to counterbalance Edmond’s wistful longings.
Edmond is coached by Honoré (Jean-Michel Martial), a black owner of the bistro next door to the theatre, whose life formed him into this wise and knowing counselor. Honoré also is a bit of a stereotype, but provides the moral support and encouragement that Edmond needs in order to not spiral downwards.
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| Photo by Nicolas Velter, courtesy of Roadside Attractions:Thomas Solvérès (Rostand), Olivier Gourmet (Coquelin) and Tom Leeb (Christian). |
The film pace picks up and becomes a delirious farce as the production is finally being put together on stage during rehearsals. The diva who plays Roxanne (Mathilde Seigner) is hilariously demanding, threatening to quit over the slightest thing. Coquelin’s son - only in the play only because of nepotism - is a horrible actor. The money men observe and cynically predict failure. The inept stage manager is overwhelmed by his duties. A rival playwright undermines Edmond with wisecracks. Many more hijinks result in the production nearly coming to a screeching halt.
Back to the reality of the original play’s production, in December 1897, Edmond Rostand created an immensely successful play, “Cyrano, My Love.” It was awarded the prestigious Légion d’Honneur (a high civil honor). Rostand was also admitted to the Académie française (the official authority for grammar and vocabulary) right after the first performance of this beloved play.
Michalik, who produced his story initially in play format (inspired by the film Shakespeare in Love), wanted to tell this story as an instance of the success of French theater right before cinema became dominant. His play was well-received, so Michalik then adapted it for the screen. He notes that there were minimal modifications from his stage play:
Everything that was essential was already there. I just had to cut two or three things and make others more fluid, adding a couple of phrases here and there. The only scene that I completely rewrote was the one with Monsieur Honoré. To allow the audience to really understand his character, I wanted to have him on a set surrounded by books, in a sort of library. On the other hand, to adapt to the camera, I completely revised the staging and scenery. In the cinema, you have to show everything.
I would love to see the stage version of this film some day, and perhaps the film will inspire its production in the United States. Meanwhile, to see this film in Albuquerque, you can go to Regal UA High Ridge 8 Theatre at 12921 Indian School NE beginning Friday, November 8, 2019. You can call the theatre at (844) 462-7342 for more information. Stay through the credits to see some interesting old films and photos. Here is a link to the trailer. https://youtu.be/TfhnPSQ73F0
