The Princess of Montpensier
"Love. Conflict. Betrayal."
Set in the high courts of 16th Century France, where the wars of religion between Catholics and Protestants are raging. Marie de Mézières, a beautiful young aristocrat, is in love with Henri de Guise, but her hand in marriage is promised to the Prince of Montpensier.
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Cast
Mélanie Thierry
Marie de Montpensier
Lambert Wilson
François de Chabannes
Gaspard Ulliel
Henri de Guise
Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet
Philippe de Montpensier
Raphaël Personnaz
Le Duc d'Anjou
Michel Vuillermoz
Le Duc de Montpensier
Philippe Magnan
Le Marquis de Mézières
Florence Thomassin
La Marquise de Mézières
Christine Brücher
La Duchesse de Montpensier
Evelina Meghnagi
Catherine de Médicis
Judith Chemla
Catherine de Guise
César Domboy
Mayenne
Reviews
CinemaSerf
Set amidst the intrigues of Catherine de Medici's French court, this follows the young "Marie" (Mélanie Thierry) who is set to marry "Henri" (Gaspard Ulliel) from the powerful Guise family when her father does a deal and promises her to "Philippe" (Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet) instead. This sets the families Guise and Montpensier at each other's throats and leaves her in a loveless marriage with a man she doesn't even know, much less like. Meantime, the chivalrous "Chabannes" (Lambert Wilson) has had enough of the brutalities of war, deserted his post, and is returning home when a very timely intervention from "Philippe" - his pupil of many years ago - saves his life and takes him to the castle where "Marie" is now living. She's a bright and intelligent woman and with her husband now sent off to fight, "Chabannes" is charged with being her tutor too. She is a quick learner and is soon aware of just how to play her own game in a world where manipulation - especially at the hands of the Duc D'Anjou (Raphaêl Personnaz) is the only law to be reckoned with. What now ensues is a typical period adventure with treachery, lust, romance, swordplay and it offers us a good looking, if a bit of a light and fluffy, look at the politics in a 16th century France beset with wars between Huguenots and Catholics and ruled by a succession of the queen's weak and indecisive sons. It's got the look of a television movie and the actors seem largely - Thierry and Wilson notwithstanding - to have been selected on eye candy value, but it's genre I like and in the spirit of Alexandre Dumas it's quite an enjoyable historical costume drama that I quite liked.
