Queen Margot

(La reine Margot, Patrice Chéreau, France/Italy/Germany 1994, 133 min., 35mm, French w/subtitles)

Period Dramas. On the night of August 23, 1572, a Catholic mob rose first in Paris and then throughout France and slaughtered thousands of Protestants in what became known as the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre. In 1845, Alexandre Dumas wrote a historical novel about these events, centered on the young princess Margaret of Valois, daughter of the scheming queen Catherine de’ Medici, who was largely responsible for all the bloodshed. Patrice Chéreau’s film adaptation is widely recognized as one of the most lavish (and blood-spattered) French period dramas, winning both the Jury Prize and the Best Actress award for Isabelle Adjani at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival.