Every few months we seem to get another re-release of a classic French movie, a phenomenon that has been one of the pleasures of the arthouse circuit. The law of averages dictated that at some point, one of these would turn out to be less than classic.
Don’t misunderstand: The 1952 comedy “Fanfan la Tulipe” is well-liked, and is passionately loved in France. But it’s more of a lighthearted romp and star vehicle than one for the ages.
The story happens during the Seven Years’ War, in the reign of Louis XV. A spirited young rogue named Fanfan (Gerard Philipe) goes through a series of swashbuckling adventures after he joins the king’s army, including the rescue of a royal carriage, escape from hanging, and the capture of an enemy regiment.
Fanfan is nicknamed “la Tulipe” by the king’s mistress, Madame de Pompadour, after he rescues her from bandits. He is convinced he is fated to marry the king’s daughter, because of a prediction made by a gypsy fortuneteller (Gina Lollobrigida).
The headstrong fellow doesn’t realize that he and the gypsy are clearly soul mates. But she does.
The film has some wonderful sword-fighting slapstick and a good deal of silliness (when Fanfan is being marched to his own hanging, he remarks that he’s glad he gets to witness an execution before he dies). What prevents it from being entirely fluffy is the satirical view of war, presented here with a sense of absurdity that would become popular in the 1960s.
“Fanfan” was directed by Christian-Jaque, a filmmaker who enjoyed a long and popular career, despite being ridiculed as part of a staid old industry by the young rebels of the French New Wave. The story itself is based on an ages-old French folk hero.
This film’s enormous success had much to do with its stars. The Italian bombshell Gina Lollobrigida, who has one of the great names in film history, was in the early stage of becoming a leading European glamour girl of the era. This movie leaves no mystery about her appeal.
And the film is a time capsule of Gerard Philipe, a beloved figure in French acting. Classically trained but effortlessly handsome, he comes across as a combination of Johnny Depp and Russell Crowe, but more fun. Philipe died of liver cancer at age 36, in 1959, thus turning himself into a legend even larger than Fanfan la Tulipe.
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