One Nation, One King

The main purpose of this fresco was to show the French Revolution through the eyes of the people , and to avoid a hollywoodian treatment. It was not the first time the French cinema had attempted such an approach : in 1937, Jean Renoir did it ,in his much-debated "la Marseillaise".

"Un peuple et son roi" is a curate's egg ; its first part does show the people , particularly in the storming of La Bastille ;a decent place is given over to women ,but why not mention the most famous of them all , Olympe de Gouges, who was ignored by the history books for years? Although they chose highly talented actors such as Olivier Gourmet ,it does not always work : one conversation,about domestic and foreign politics circa 1792 does not sound popular at all ; The scenes when Gourmet the glass-blower teaches his job to his apprentice ,is interspersed with scenes of the trial of the king ,(or it is the other way about?) :the connection escapes me,I fear ...

The storming of the Tuileries is a good moment but spoiled by the hackneyed trick of slow motion ....The humiliated king , who takes refuge in "la salle du manège" ,the Assemblée Nationale 's seat , who 's still got his hearty appetite ;the choice of comédien français Laurent Laffite is eminently questionable : louis XVI was an educated clever man,but he was gauche , oafish and not handsome at all ; when he's climbing the steps of the scaffold ,he's told " watch out,it's slippery!"(!) ,but the priest does not utter his famous " Heaven awaits on you,son of Saint-Louis". Marie-Antoinette ,in her short appearances ,is exactly how she is shown in old history books : aloof, haughty ; the popular Revolution was fueled by this hatred for the queen :why does one never feel it ,particularly in the women's march on Versailles in October 1789 which is almost treated as a musical whereas the words were harsh :" bread or the queen's guts !"

Unfortunately , and more and more as the film progresses, the people takes a back seat to the historic figures :Robespierre,Barnave , Saint-Just ,Marat,et al ; in Louis XVI's nightmare , even the former kings are summoned (they look like Madame Tussaud's wax models : the Sun King, Henri IV and Louis XI).

And the final scene should have seen through the populace's eyes , not on the scaffold ! It succumbs to the initial vice :hollywoodian to the core ; there are French movies about Joan of Arc where the stake is shown from a distance ,or not at all.

All in all, it's a decent show, but it falls short of its goal.

An inspired perspective about French Revolution. Beautiful cinematography. Admirable performances. And the sparkles of the change in realistic manner exposed. It is easy to critic it but it is not Danton , not the expected fresco , only a courageous exercise of reflection of small histories and their clash against National Ansembly. It is the film of memorable scenes. And that does it more than interesting, maybe useful for feel old events - fundamental bricks of the our present reality.

A visual feast, if a little too 'clean', in its production design. As much as I enjoyed the view I was ultimately disappointed by this film. Where's the story to engage me? I tried to let that aspect take a back seat in hope that the directors vision/world view would become clear. It didn't appear. A juxtaposition of beautifully executed scenes (though overlit imo), does not make a gripping film. For the major finance behind this project it feels like a wasted opportunity.

Two hours for showing four years of the french bloody Revolution, Pierre Schoeller had to make some difficult choices : he decided to show the little people from the streets (having a stone in the belly) meeting and fighting the rich political figures (having how many roasts in the belly?). And most important, he shows women strongly speaking in assemblies. The casting is astounding, all the actors play with high energy and are possessed (Denis Lavant as Marat of course, and also Adèle Haenel unforgettable, and Laurent Lafitte as Louis XVI is imposing). The cinematography and editing are virtuoso (destruction of tower letting people from the streets having sun light, massacre of the Champ de Mars, execution of Louis XVI, ...). The original soundtrack is also attractive. I read in papers "Un Peuple et son Roi" is a failure, it's wrong, it's awful good, all the ending is gripping. Bravo, I wish success.

First, the title is wrong: the king is absent of the movie and carricatured when shown. The link between the king and the people is not shown or analysed.

Second, even if the episodes or the short stories are well depicted and in a way interesting, it doesn't make a film. Where is a story? Where is something to care about? It's not even a documentary. It's not much...

Third, the « left wing » (populist?) vision of a people betrayed by the « elites » is boring.