Marquise

Directed by Véra Belmont, this 1997 historical drama draws on the life of the real seventeenth-century actress Marquise-Thérèse de Gorla. Raised in poverty, young Marquise survives by trading on her looks and her gift for dancing. When a travelling theatre company stops in her town, its stout comic performer Du Parc falls for her, and she accepts him only on condition that she may join the troupe. They marry, and he brings her to Paris to begin her career on the stage. In the capital she quickly shines in Molière's company, capturing the admiration of the young playwright Racine and even of King Louis XIV. Although she becomes involved with other men, her heart always reserves a special corner for her improbable husband. Sophie Marceau leads the cast, joined by Bernard Giraudeau and Lambert Wilson. The French-Italian-Swiss co-production was filmed in late 1996 on Italian locations in Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna, and it received a César nomination for its music.