Aristokraten

" What have you done to deserve such advantages? Put yourself to the trouble of being born-nothing more. For the rest-a very ordinary man! "(Beaumarchais ) The sequence when the nouveau riche ,who bought his title , screams a la Figaro his hate for the true aristocrat who has humiliated him by leaving his table impromptu ,rings true ,but it''s the aristocracy vs parvenus feud all over again ;it had already been treated,in a better way ("les affaires sont les affaires")in the past.

Fresnay hams it up but the twins give him a run for his money ; to portray a stubborn aristocrat who lives in the past ,it was certainly the best way to act ; his world of honor,of chivalry is not worth any king's shilling in the twentieth century;worse,it can have a dangerous effect on easily influenced sons; today's audience will find it hard to relate with these consequences: the twins' duel does not make any sense for in the past the nobles had a reason to fight and those brats have none, not even a girl .Pierre's heroism is demonstrative , just to show the father's mistakes , when an event happens just at the right moment .

The cast ,fortunately ,is good ,featuring a young Maurice Ronet ,Jacques Daqmine and Brigitte Auber who had seen better days with Duvivier ("sous le ciel de Paris")and Becker ("rendez-vous de juillet") and later on would with Hitchcock ("to catch a thief")