Ruy Blas (1948)

Director:

Pierre Billon

Writers:

Victor Hugo (play) and
Jean Cocteau (screenplay)

Release Date:

1948 (Germany)

Genre:

Drama

Plot Keywords:

Based On Play | Character Name In Title

Cast

Danielle Darrieux	...	La reine d'Espagne
Jean Marais	...	Ruy Blas / Don César de Bazan
Marcel Herrand	...	Don Salluste de Bazan
Gabrielle Dorziat	...	La duchesse d'Albuquerque
Alexandre Rignault	...	Goulatromba
Giovanni Grasso	...	Don Guritan
Paul Amiot	...	Le marquis de Santa Cruz
Jone Salinas	...	Casilda, la servante (as Ione Salinas)
Gilles Quéant	...	Le duc d'Albe
Jacques Berlioz	...	Un ministre
Charles Lemontier	...	Le comte de Camporel
Pierre Magnier	...	Le marquis de Priego
Armand Lurville	...	L'archevêque (as Lurville)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Paul Muller
Eddy Debray	...	Un ministre (uncredited)
Allain Dhurtal	...	Un ministre (uncredited)
Guy Favières	...	Un ministre (uncredited)
Yves Massard	...	Bit part (uncredited)
Rolla Norman	...	Un ministre (uncredited)
Claude Serre	...	L'écuyer du duc d'Albe (uncredited)

Directed by
Pierre Billon

Writing credits
Victor Hugo		(play)
Jean Cocteau		screenplay and dialogue

Produced by
Georges Legrand	....	producer
Nino Martegani	....	producer
André Paulvé	....	producer

Original Music by
Georges Auric

Cinematography by
Michel Kelber

Film Editing by
Maurice Serein

Production Design by
Georges Wakhévitch

Costume Design by
Marcel Escoffier
Jean Zay

Production Management
Vittorio Barattolo	....	production manager
René Jaspard	....	production manager
Paolo Leoni	....	production supervisor
Lucien Pinoteau	....	unit manager
Julien Rivière	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Michel Boisrond	....	assistant director
Jacopo Comin	....	assistant director

Production Companies

• Films André Paulvé
• Productions Georges Legrand
• Martegani Produzione

Distributors

• Atlantis Film (1948) (Italy) (theatrical)
• DisCina (1948) (France) (theatrical)
• Internationale Filmallianz (IFA) (1948) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Oefram Filmgesellschaft (1948) (Austria) (theatrical)
• Atlantisfilm (Italy)
• DisCina International (1948) (USA) (subtitled)
• Video France (1996) (USA) (video) (new subtitles)

Runtime:

France:93 min

Country:

France | Italy

Language:

French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

West Germany:16 | Finland:K-16

Filming Locations:

ICET Studios, Milan, Lombardia, Italy

Company:

Films André Paulvé

Movie Connections:

Version of Don Caesar de Bazan (1912)

Actually Cocteau's work.

Directed by Pierre Billon,but actually Cocteau's touch can be felt here there and everywhere.Cocteau has always loved to adapt great lit classics:"l'éternel retour" was a modern transcription of "Tristan and Iseut";"Beauty and the Beast" ,his masterpiece,tackled Madame Leprince de Beaumont's fairy-tale;Later Madame de la Fayette's "la princesse de Clèves" was brought to the screen .Here Victor Hugo's "Ruy Blas".Jean Marais is ideal as the romantic hero,and he forms with Danielle Darrieux a couple the crowds could easily dream of.That kind of couple queen-and-jack,we will find it again in "l'aigle à deux têtes",except that the jack has been replaced by an anarchist,but that does not make a big difference when you're depicting romantic passion.The setting in the palace are as extravagant as in any of other Cocteau creations.Billon ,avoiding filmed theater,gets his camera out of it and achieves good location shots in the torrent.Jean Marais plays two roles like in "Beauty and the beast",but his part of a brigand who resembles the student/jack like a brother is not as convincing.