Colette is a historical and biographical drama which premiered in 2018.
The topic of this drama is the life and work of the famous French writer Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette, who was nominated for the Nobel Prize of Literature in 1948. Here is some basic information about this drama which premiered in 2018:
** Director: Wash Westmoreland
** Writers: Wash Westmoreland, Richard Glatzer (1952-2015), and Rebecca Lenkiewicz
** Language: English
** Run time: 111 minutes
The cast includes the following:
** Keira Knightley as Sidonie-Gabrielle (“Gabi”) Colette (1873-1954) – a writer – a mime
** Dominic West as Henry Gauthier-Villars (“Willy”) (1859-1931) – a writer – Colette’s first husband (they were married 1893; separated 1906; and divorced 1910
** Eleanor Tomlinson as Georgie Raoul-Duval – an American woman from Louisiana who lives in Paris
** Denise Gough as Marquise de Belbeuf = Mathilde de Morny (“Missy”) (1863-1944)
** Fiona Shaw as Adele Eugenie Sidonie (1835-1912) – Colette’s mother
** Aiysha Hart as Emile Marie Bouchaud (“Polaire”) (1874-1939) – a singer – an actress
** Rebecca Root as Marguerite Valette-Eymery (“Rachilde”) (1860-1953) – a writer
** Al Weaver as Marcel Schwab (1867-1905) – one of Willy’s ghost writers
** Ray Panthaki as Pierre Veber (1869-1942) – one of Willy’s ghost writers
** D. Beau as Georges Wague (1874-1965) – a mime
** Sloan Thompson as Mathilde – Colette and Willy’s maid
** Johnny K. Palmer as Paul Heon – Willy’s secretary
** Julian Wadham as Ollendorf – a publisher
** Caroline Bolton as Flossy
** Shannon Tarbet as Meg
Since this drama is based on a true story, the basic facts are part of the public record. They are not a secret. Therefore, I feel free to mention some of them in this review.
While this drama is based on a true story, it is not a documentary film. It is a dramatized version of events.
Not everything happened exactly as shown here. Perhaps some details have been added, changed or excluded for practical reasons or dramatic purposes. But the basic story is true.
As stated above, this drama is about Colette, but it does not cover her whole life from the beginning in 1873 to the end in 1954. It covers only a period of thirteen years, the time from 1892 to 1905, that is the beginning of her literary career.
We see her with her parents in the village Saint-Sauveur in 1892 and in Paris in 1893, when she is married to Willy, and we see her when she writes her first novels, the semi-autobiographical novels about Claudine. These best-sellers are published under his name. She starts her literary career as one of his ghost writers!
We also get some glimpses of her private life. We see her when she is very close to Georgie and later when she is very close to Missy. Her friendship with these and other women caused quite a scandal at the time.
What do reviewers say about this historical and biographical drama? Here are the results of three review aggregators:
** 67 per cent = IMDb
** 74 per cent = Meta
** 69 per cent = Rotten Tomatoes (the audience)
** 87 per cent = Rotten Tomatoes (the critics)
The ratings are quite good, as you can see. I understand the numerous positive reviews, but I do not agree with them.
This is, in many ways, a wonderful drama about a young woman who discovers that she has a real talent for writing and acting, but unfortunately it has a serious flaw which outweighs all the positive elements.
What is this flaw? The answer is the language that is spoken. This drama about a French writer is set in France, but all characters speak English, which is a huge violation of historical truth!
Only one character in this drama has a good reason to speak English. Who? The American woman from Louisiana. All other characters are French. And they should speak French. But they don’t.
The movie-makers worked hard to make this historical drama as realistic and as convincing as possible. This is obvious. They did many things to make us believe we are in France around the year 1900. Here are some examples:
** The locations chosen are good.
** The characters are dressed in clothes that were common in France at the time.
** The technology which we see is fitting for the time: an old steam train, an old automobile; and electric light is a new and marvellous invention.
** When we see the cover of a book, the title is in French!
** When we see Colette writing her first novel, there is a close-up on the page and the words are written in French!
In each case, the movie-makers focus on what we see; on the visual side of the drama. But what happens when the French characters begin to talk? They speak English! The illusion that we are in France around the year 1900 is totally shattered; it is completely destroyed.
Having Colette and Willy and everyone around them speaking English is ridiculous, because it never happened.
This drama has positive and negative elements. Unfortunately, the latter are much stronger than the former. When I look at the ratings, I have to say that this drama is highly overrated.
The cinematography is excellent, and the actors play their roles well, but they speak the wrong language. And the language that is spoken is not a minor detail. It is an important part of the whole package.
A drama is not only about what we see; it is also about what we hear. What I see in this drama is wonderful, but what I hear is awful, because the two aspects of the drama do not fit each other.
Why would a director want to make a drama about a French author with actors who speak English? Why would all these actors accept to play French characters who speak English?
Obviously, a drama about the life and works of a French writer should be performed by French actors. Subtitles in English (and other languages) should be added for the benefit of viewers who do not understand French and viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Having French characters who speak English means that every scene violates the historical accuracy of the story the movie-makers want to tell.
I have to go against the general trend. This drama is fatally flawed. It cannot get more than two stars.
PS # 1. Colette is dedicated to “Richard,” this is Richard Glatzer, who was the spouse of Wash Westmoreland. Glatzer died in 2015, following a battle with ALS.
PS # 2. Westmoreland and Glatzer worked together on the movie Still Alice, which premiered in 2014.
PS # 3. On Amazon there are several reviews of this product. Two reviewers mention the problem with the language. They find it disturbing that all characters speak English in a story about a French writer. I am glad to see I am not the only one who regards the language spoken in the drama as a serious problem.
PS # 4. The chronology of events in the drama is not always correct. Here is one example: the pantomime “Dream of Egypt” is included in the drama, which ends in 1905. But this pantomime (which caused a huge riot) was not performed until 1907. It falls outside the time frame that was chosen for the drama.
PS # 5. Colette is a documentary film which premiered in 2024. This French film covers the whole life of Colette, from the beginning in 1873 to the end in 1954.
REFERENCE
Secrets of the Flesh: A Life of Colette
by Judith Thurman
(1999 hardcover)
(2000 paperback)
*****
Gabrielle Colette
(1873-1954)
*****
