Though it is little more than a high-minded variation on "Dangerous Liaisons," the French film "Ridicule" does have some wit all its own.
But it also begins with a rather witless scene of vulgarity that audiences may find a bit shocking: A man urinates on an aging invalid, and as he prepares to do so, the moment is captured in a closeup.Nothing else in the movie so strongly warrants the film's R rating (although it is raunchy in places) - but this may be the first film in some time to chase some audience members out of the theater in the first couple of minutes.
The scene (which certainly could have been more subtley filmed) does set the tone, however, as the film goes on to make a case for the shallowness of 18th-century French aristocrats who engaged in "witty repartee" as a mean-spirited form of humiliation and repression, to keep class distinctions in line.
The hero of the piece is Ponce-lu-don de Malavoy (Charles Berling), an idealistic and naive country engineer who approaches the court of Louis XVI to ask for money. His hope is that the king will finance his design to construct draining facilities in his village in the south of France, an area plagued by disease-infested swamp-land.
But when he arrives, he discovers that he will need more than a serious proposition to attract the king's attention. He will need wit.
In fact, he won't even be granted an audience unless he demonstrates a knack for turning a phrase. It seems the court is engaged in constant one-upmanship, and anyone who can't make a joke that pleases the king will automatically be on the outs.
Fortunately, Ponceludon falls under the instruction of a Versailles doctor with connections (Jean Rochefort), who also just happens to have a lovely daughter (Judith Godreche). (Romance is in the air, but it's a rocky road.)
As Ponceludon works his way into the king's graces, it soon becomes apparent that he does have natural wit - and he even attracts the attention of a beautiful, older countess (Fanny Ardant).
But even as he is seduced by the rewards of pleasing the court, his rivals, many of whom have been around a lot longer, will try desperately to make him an object of ridicule. And arrogance can mean downfall.
The comedy here is suprisingly edgy and blends quite well with the film's more dramatic intentions. The performances are uniformly excellent, and the period is captured well.
But the film does run out of steam after awhile and in the final third becomes more predictable and less clever.
Still, there is much to admire along the way.
If you can get past that opening scene.
"Ridicule" is rated R for nudity, sex, violence and vulgarity.