Fanfan la Tulipe

"Fanfan la tulipe" is still Gerard Philippe's most popular part and it began the swashbuckler craze which throve in the French cinema in the 1955-1965 years.It made Gina Lollobrigida a star (Lollobrigida and Philippe would team up again in René Clair"s "Belles de nuit" the same year.

"Fanfan la tulipe" is completely mad,sometimes verging on absurd .Henri Jeanson's witty lines -full of dark irony- were probably influenced by Voltaire and "Candide" .Antimilitarism often comes to the fore:"these draftees radiate joie de vivre -and joie de mourir when necessary (joy of life and joy of death)""It becomes necessary to recruit men when the casualties outnumber the survivors" "You won the battle without the thousands of deaths you had promised me, king Louis XV complains,but no matter ,let's wait for the next time."

A voice over comments the story at the beginning and at the end and history is given a rough ride:height of irony,it's a genuine historian who speaks!

Christian-Jaque directs the movie with gusto and he knows only one tempo :accelerated.

Remake in 2003 with Vincent Perez and Penelope Cruz.I have not seen it but I do not think it had to be made in the first place.

Fanfan la Tulipe is a 'swashbuckler, romantic comedy' set during the French revolution. Filmed in 1952, the film was a great success in French cinema which then coined the years of swashbuckler classics. The film revolves around a central character 'Fanfan la Tulipe' who has himself a reputation, not just for being a noisy and boastful swordsman (a swashbuckler) but the audience also gets the impression very early on in the film that he is somewhat of a hit with the ladies. This is then emphasised a couple of minutes into the film, when he alludes himself into thinking that he will marry the King's daughter. Fanfan la Tulipe is a very liberal character who rarely abides by the rule of others, and instead chooses to do his own thing.

The film commences with a narrative like style, which is carried on throughout the film. The main narration happens at the beginning and at the end of the film, but occasionally in the middle of the film we hear the narration once again, sometimes helping the viewer to tell what is going on, and directing the view to certain objects in the scene. In a way it summarises what is going to happen in the next part of the film.

The film does not leave any long lasting impression on one's mind after you have seen it, but all in all it is a very easy film to watch. The not so subtle wit from nearly all the characters, and the unperturbed nature of Fanfan La Tulipe (even in the most difficult of situations) help to make this film the unchallenging piece of cinema that it is.

Having said that, albeit an easy film to watch, it is an important film of its time, and also a great source of amusement.

Okay, perhaps not, but it certainly is a very good adventure-comedy! One of the best of its kind. It has everything: romance, swordfights, abductions, witty bantering between characters, sly remarks about war. And it can boast of inspired casting, with Gérard Philipe at his romantic peak, all handsome and dashing, with soulful eyes, sensitive features, and a beautiful, velvety speaking voice. A very young Gina Lollobrigida was never more alluring, and the stupid villain, the amorous king Louis, and the slimy royal valet Lébel are all great character actors. In fact there's never a dull moment in this gem of a French film! And didn't it win the main prize at Cannes?

It was released in France on dvd several years ago--I wish it would be re-released with English subtitles. Do not confuse this with a remake with Penelope Cruz which gets poor reviews. Gerard Phillippe is a peasant who is told by a fortune teller that he will marry the daughter of the king. He sets off to join the army and goes to war. His love, however, is Gina Lollabrigida in an early movie for her. I won't spoil the end. Gerard Phillippe died a few years later at a young age, a great loss to moviedom.

There's much to enjoy in this joyous French swashbuckler, particularly since it doesn't contain one slow moment. The action is almost nonstop, and all the performers contribute hilarious and heartfelt moments that make "FanFan la Tulipe" a delightful romp. It was a huge box office hit in France, turning both the handsome and charismatic Gérard Philipe and the beautiful and voluptuous Gina Lollobrigida into big stars.

The story is set during the reign of King Louis XV, and the character Fanfan as played by the splendid Gérard Philipe is sort of a French "Tom Jones." He's a guy who can't help but get in trouble with the ladies, and the opening scene has him escaping a "shotgun wedding" by spontaneously enlisting in the French military. Unfortunately, soon this way of life doesn't agree with Fanfan, and he winds up getting himself even deeper into trouble. Gina Lollobrigida plays the seductive daughter of the Commanding Officer of Fanfan's unit, who inspires Fanfan by making an unusual prediction for his future -- one which she later comes to regret.

The choreography of the sword battles and the other physical confrontations are top-notch, very unpredictable and absolutely hilarious. A stunt double was hardly (if ever!) used for the athletic Philipe, and it's obviously the French star doing most of the work. I heard that the actual stunt men working the movie presented him with an certificate when the shooting wrapped, which named Philipe as an honorary stuntman himself. Most of what Philipe accomplishes here has to be seen to be believed. Jumping from rooftops, dangling from trees, wild horseback chases and so much more lend a wild energy to the proceedings.

Perhaps the only downside for me at least was that "Fanfan la Tulipe" is filmed in black and white. If ever there was a film that cried out for color -- this is the one. The locales, costumes, sets and props would have been magnificent in color, I think. In fact, on the Criterion DVD that I watched, they included one sequence that had been colorized. It looked great, and although I would never suggest that every b&w film would be better with color, this one certainly would. For those unaware, the colorization process has made great advances since the 1980's, and they can now make the colors look as vibrant or as subtle as the scene dictates it should be.

The supporting cast also provides lots of enjoyment, and I'd be neglectful not to mention a few of these fine European actors. Geneviève Page is supremely beautiful, icy with an undercurrent of passion as Madame Pompadour, Olivier Hussenot is wonderful as Fanfan's loyal sidekick who's saddled with six small children and an obese peasant wife. Nerio Bernardi makes a comically despicable antagonist who meets a poetic fate eventually.

So, I'd highly recommend this to fans of Errol Flynn movies, especially since Philipe conveys some of the same boyish and naughty charm of that classic star. Director Christian-Jaque formed an adventurous and romantic comedy that has loads of charm and thrills. Swashbuckling at its best!

***** out of *****