«Lost illusions»: Youtube and its sponsored content hasn't invented anything

The costumes and the taste for a good word won't fool us. The adaptation of Lost illusions directed by Xavier Giannoli, shines with its grand spectacle allure and dazzling cast. A real coup de force at a time when the classic adaptation model is in short supply. A good way to dispel preconceived notions about the genre.

Perhaps you too have memories, distant reminiscences, of film adaptations of great classics. For example, a viewing that concludes the study of a literary work in high school. One thinks of Dangerous liaisons by Stephen Frears, the untouchable Bovary by the no less untouchable Chabrol... or the Germinal by Claude Berri, starring Depardieu. But the exercise has fallen out of favor. The literary works of the XIX^th century. They are timidly relegated to the rank of TV movies and remain the great absentees of the box-office. So are screenwriters no longer interested in adaptations? Is this a sign of public disenchantment? And it's not the mediocre Bel-Ami starring Robert Pattinson in 2012, which reversed the trend. So we had to Lost illusions to beat the odds.

Love's fury and the Parisian elopement

Lucien Chardon (Benjamin Voisin) is a commoner living off his sister's husband. His sister's husband owns a printing house in Angoulême, where the frail Lucien works while dreaming of a career as a writer. Bloated with love for the Marquise Louise de Bargeton (Cécile de France), this unfortunate protector dreams of bringing her lover's talent to light. But the aristocracy of Angoulême doesn't care about Daisies, the young man's book of poems. In a fit of madness, Louise decides to take the naive Lucien with her to the capital.

With no mastery of etiquette, the young man makes numerous mistakes and is crucified at the Opéra, where the real show takes place in the dressing rooms. Left to his own devices in a Paris «where you walk or you die», he meets Etienne Lousteau (Vincent Lacoste), who draws him into the shenanigans of the flourishing press. Far from the high ideals of information. The press is sold on gossip. A barometer of reputations to be made or broken... For Lucien, the ascent into the Paris of possibilities begins... Illusions and disillusions too.

Xavier Giannoli's focus is obviously on social climbing. Benjamin Voisin excels in his role as a young provincial who moves to Paris to become and conquer. The editing contributes to this increasingly abject and limitless frenzy.

A subtly depicted Parisian comedy

So what's the secret to this adaptation's success? Apart from the staging, the strength of this adaptation lies in its ability to respect Balzac's intention. There's no self-centered story about one man, but rather an unfolding backdrop. Lucien's Paris is a city of possibilities. You go up to Paris, you despise the provinces. Subtly brought to life by a voice-over - whose identity is revealed at the end of the story - the story of this Paris of the Restoration unfolds. The appearance of advertising posters in the streets, the development of industrial printing machines that accelerated the number of press publications, against a backdrop of war between royalists and liberals... and, above all, the workings of certain Parisian microcosms, such as that of culture.

Dauriat (Gérard Depardieu), the biggest publisher in Paris, is illiterate, and willing to buy reviews from journalists who won't even read his book. Everything is sold to the highest bidder. A practice that extends to the entire cultural sphere, and particularly to the theater. Bribes are the key to success or failure. You pay for success or to be the laughingstock of Paris. In detail, this whole underlying universe, inaccessible to the eye of the amateur observer, is brought to life on screen. The film's construction pays homage to Balzaci's work. The writer's gesture is transposed to cinema.

But in Balzac, nothing is gratuitous. The character of Nathan d'Anastazio (Xavier Dolan), novelist and Lucien's alter ego, reminds us of this. Literary ambitions fade away, as appearance and envy take possession of the purest ambitions. But who could be strong enough to resist the Parisian trap?

Write to the author: fanny.agostino@leregardlibre.com

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