Among
the other contenders for Caméra D'Or
honours and there are 24 debut features
in the four different sections at Cannes this
year Marie-Christine Questerbert's
La Chambre Obscure (The Dark Room)
stands apart as a costume drama set in Italy
in the 14th century. If the title sounds familiar,
then you guessed right it's based on
Boccaccio's erotic tale found in the Decameron.
Queried
about her attraction to the period and the
story, and whether she might have seen Pier
Paolo Pasolini's version, Questerbert responds:
"The 14th century was a period in which everything
was romanticised: God, the devil, history,
life and death. It is not a chanson de geste,
nor a popular tale in the way that Pasolini
understood it. Rather, it's a tale of chivalry
in which the feminine character sets out into
the world. She is no longer the lady waiting
at her window for feats of prowess to be accomplished
on her behalf. The obstinate rival of traditional
authority is desire. She takes
it upon herself to embody this urge."
As for the story itself, it has a Shakespearean
twist to it and comes across as distinctly
modern. Young Alienor (Caroline Ducey) throws
medieval mores to the wind by following the
dictates of her heart. One day, she takes
her own fate into her hands by risking her
life to cure the King of France of a contagious
illness.
Offered a reward in return, she asks the King
for permission to marry Bertrand de Roussillon
(Melvil Poupaud), whom she has loved since
childhood. The King agrees, but Bertrand feels
compromised and refuses to consummate the
marriage. Instead, he runs off to Tuscany
pursued by Alienor. And here's the
Boccaccio twist: she disguises herself as
a young Italian woman to entice the duped
Bertrand into a passionate confession
of love.
Asked if she ever considered setting the story
in today's world, Questerbert admits: "I considered
it, but I think it is more important that
Alienor is part of a world in which institutions
are still aristocratic, and power is sacred."
Marie-Christine Questerbert studied philosophy
and art before directing her first short
film Les Filles Hereditaires
(1982), after which she found herself in
demand as an actress: Une Adventure
De Billy Le Kid, with Jean-Pierre
Léaud, and Anatomie D'Un Rapport,
in which she played the lead role.
After
seeing a Michael Snow experimental film,
she discovered a passion for photography
and screenwriting, went to Italy to meet
Cesar Zavattini and Tonino Guerra, and wrote
a book entitled called The Italian Screenwriters.
In Italy she made another short film, Cremonini,
Images Reflets (1996), then
read "Story III/9" from the Decameron.
Daniéle
Dubroux, a talented writer-director in her
own right, collaborated with Questerbert
on the screenplay.
Ron
Holloway
