Le hussard sur le toit (1995)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Jean-Paul Rappeneau

Writers:

Jean-Claude Carrière (writer)
Nina Companéez (writer)

Release Date:

6 October 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Their only chance for survival was each other.

Plot:

In a time of war and disease, a young officer gallantly tries to help a young woman find her husband.

Plot Keywords:

Cholera | Provence | France | Wine | Epidemic

Awards:

4 wins & 8 nominations

Cast

Juliette Binoche	...	Pauline de Théus
Olivier Martinez	...	Angelo Pardi
Pierre Arditi	...	Monsieur Peyrolle
François Cluzet	...	The Doctor
Jean Yanne	...	Le Colporteur
Claudio Amendola	...	Maggionari
Isabelle Carré	...	The Tutor
Carlo Cecchi	...	Giuseppe
Christiane Cohendy	...	Madame Peyrolle
Jacques Sereys	...	The old man
Nathalie Krebs	...	Madame Barthelemy
Laura Marinoni	...	Carla
Elisabeth Margoni	...	The farmer's wife
Yolande Moreau	...	Madame Rigoard
Christophe Odent	...	Monsieur Barthelemy

Also Known As:

The Horseman on the Roof (USA)

MPAA:

Rated R for a scene of nudity.

Runtime:

135 min | Argentina:134 min | Germany:136 min | USA:118 min

Country:

France

Language:

French | Italian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Chile:18 | Finland:K-12 | Germany:12 (w) | Hong Kong:IIB | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône, France

Company:

Hachette Première

Quotes:

Angelo: Mother, you always wanted me to be more reckless. Today, you would have been proud of me.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Afula Express (1997)

A dashing romantic drama with thrilling moments.

Provence provides a stunning locale for this romantic adventure. The camera work is exquisite and every opportunity is taken to capture the natural beauty of this region. The story is simple enough. Angelo, an Italian colonel (handsome Olivier Martinez) escapes from Austrian-oppressed Italy to raise funds in the continuing battle against Austria. He finds more than an unsympathetic acceptance in France. Most of the towns through which he rides are beset with cholera. The camera scenes of the dead and dying victims, horse-drawn carts packed high with bodies and funeral pyres are terrifying enough, but it is the fluttering of black wings as crows seek out the eyes of the dying victims that frighten most. Some of the close-ups are pretty grim. In lighter vein I liked the scene where a cat befriends our horseman and he talks to it on the roof about how wars are won with money as much as guns. The cat is a great little actor. The horseman an accomplished swordsman carves his way through many a desperate situation (What hero doesn't?) He acquires a bottle of medicine from a dying stranger who has taught him a massage technique to avert death from cholera. On his way back to Italy with a bag of gold coins, he gives protection to Pauline, a doctor's wife (Juliette Binoche)who is seeking out her missing husband in the cholera-infected area. The young 25-year old colonel who sends almost daily letters to his mother in Italy (they are really a diary of events) behaves as the perfect gentleman at all times, but his protegee is obviously drawn to him. Here is a love story where the lovers admire from a distance never submitting to the chemistry which is drawing them together. When the woman collapses with cholera, all existing barriers are forgotten as he works on her frantically with his acquired knowledge to save her life. One of the great joys of this film is to watch the handsome faces of Martinez and Binoche. Their beauty contrasts sharply with the agonised plight of the villagers and the devilish black crows which hover continuously about the dead, fluttering out through open doors and windows. The ending may not satisfy some, but it leaves us with the thought that somewhere sometime all will be well again.