Discount Shopping Online :: DVD Ridicule : : Patrice Leconte

Ridicule
starring: Charles Berling, Jean Rochefort, Fanny Ardant, Judith Godrèche, Bernard Giraudeau
directed by: Patrice Leconte

List Price: $19.99

Amazon.com's Price: $17.99

You Save: $2.00 (10%)
Prices subject to change.

Used Price: $13.45
Third Party New Price: $12.21

Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Binding: DVD
EAN: 0786936231120
Format: Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Label: Miramax
Manufacturer: Miramax
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Miramax
Region Code: 1
Release Date: January 13, 2004
Running Time: 102 minutes
Sales Rank: 38108
Studio: Miramax
Theatrical Release Date: November 22, 1996

Related Items:

Editorial Review:

Description:
Nominated for an Academy Award(R) (Best Foreign Language Film, 1996) and honored by critics as one of the year's 10 best motion pictures, RIDICULE is an exceptionally entertaining tale of passion and deceit! In a desperate quest to save his hometown, a young man quickly learns that a sharp wit is the key to open any door in the Versailles court of Louis XVI! But his mission is complicated when he finds himself locked in a dangerous triangle with two very seductive ladies: a sophisticated older woman who can help him ... and an innocent young beauty with nothing to offer but her love! Wickedly funny humor and outstanding performances highlight this must-see triumph!

Amazon.com:
In Patrice Leconte's cool, precise moral comedy Ridicule, the corrupt, sycophantic court of King Louis XVI is invaded by a provincial nobleman, Ponceludon de Malavoy (Charles Berling), who with the help of his own sharp tongue, the coaching of the retired courtier Marquis de Bellegarde (Jean Rochefort), and the love of the Marquis's beautiful, nature-loving daughter (Judith Godrèche) hopes to win funds for his project to drain the fever-infested swamps of his homeland. But first he has to get by the cunning, sexually manipulative Madame de Blayac (Fanny Ardant, imperious and superb) and her waspish, priestly ally, the Abbot de Vilecourt (Bernard Giraudeau).

As shaped by screenwriter Rémi Waterhouse, Ridicule is a kind of dashing verbal swashbuckler in which duels aren't fought with swords, but with the equally fatal weapon of words--rapier wit in its most literal sense. Laconte directs with an appealing elegance and a scathing sobriety as he unfolds a fable that could just as easily take place in a Wall Street boardroom, a Park Avenue executive suite, or a Hollywood commissary. --Dave Kehr

Customer Reviews

Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating:

- An Addendum to "Off With Their Heads"
H.M. Pyles's review "Off With Their Heads" is probably a more cogent plot synopsis than I would make time to write here, so I will forego the synopsis and refer the reader to his review for that. But I wanted to add a few comments about this film, which is a true favorite of mine... While not averse to foreign language films, I don't watch too many of them, probably for the reasons most movie-goers in America forego them: I want to watch rather than read when an actor is performing, and I know I'm losing some contextual nuances when I watch a film in a language where I am not totally fluent. But this is a wickedly entertaining film IN ADDITION to being a real morality play. The stunningly gorgeous and stunningly talented Fanny Ardant really shines in this film, and to my delight, gets lots of screen time. All of the acting is exceptional, as are the sets, costumes, et cetera.

Of course, there are ... Read More

Rating:

- He Who Laughs Last
I just got done watching a delightful movie by the name of "Ridicule". By categorization, this would come under the category of a "costume drama/comedy" and it's pre-revolution setting was a key element to the movie's impact. However, the fancy sets and costumes were not just an excuse to make a movie; the counts and countess's served to display a world of benign ignorance of the world around them (as only the 16th Century French nobility could).

The movie follows a well-meaning lesser noble who seeks to remedy the unhealthy conditions in his estate. To do so, he must speak to the proper component in the king's government. Getting through to the right person becomes a game for those on the inside and a farce to those on the outside. It makes our own bureaucracy seem quite efficient in comparison. Our hero does his best to cultivate the right persons for his quest to drain the swamp back home. ... Read More

Rating:

- "Wit opens any door."
Sometimes with movie distribution, as with humour, timing is everything. Patrice Leconte's Ridicule is a long way from the best work from almost anyone involved, yet still proved a major arthouse success outside France, picking up Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for Best Foreign Film, winning a BAFTA as well as a nomination for the Palme D'Or at Cannes and winning four Cesars, including Best Film and Best Director, as well as another eight nominations in France itself. All of which leaves you with the suspicion that it couldn't have been up against much competition that year. It's certainly not a bad film, but at times it's almost as slight as its subject - the rules of wit and ridicule at the Court of Versailles under King Louis XVI, where you live or die by the readiness of your wit and where a single misstep can cast you into oblivion.

Charles Berling is the impoverished minor aristocrat seeking ... Read More

Rating:

- Excellent
I've watched quite a few french foreign films, and I have to say that this is one of the best quality I've seen. It's a bit stark at times, but hey, that's the french for you. The characters are well developed. The costumes are very realistic. It's not the greatest movie ever, but it will make you laugh, and keep you interested.

Discount Shopping Online Books and Publications

DVD : Ridicule
Books and Publications Average Rating:

Search the web for info about Ridicule

Discount Shopping Online Books and Publications

DVD : RidiculeBooks and Publications Average Rating:

Search the web for info about Ridicule

DVD : Ridicule
Books and Publications Average Rating: