Valmont (film)
Encyclopedia
Valmont is a 1989 drama film
directed by Miloš Forman
, based on the French novel Les Liaisons Dangereuses
(1782
) by Choderlos de Laclos
. It was adapted for the screen with a screenplay by Jean-Claude Carrière
. The film stars Colin Firth
, Annette Bening
and Meg Tilly.
Valmont received an Academy Award
nomination for Best Costume Design
(Theodor Pištěk).
) is a beautiful, wealthy widow in society discovers her secret lover Gercourt (Jeffrey Jones
) is betrothed. Merteuil learns from her cousin Madame de Volanges (Siân Phillips
) that Gercourt's new fiancé is none other than Volanges' 15 year old daughter Cecile (Fairuza Balk
). Volanges confides in Merteuil that Gercourt chose Cecile as she was raised in a convent to keep Cecile chaste before marriage. Volanges also admits there were worries over the betrothal as people were discussing Gercourt's former mistress's sanity.
Angered over the loss of her lover and his slight of her character, Merteuil plots to deface Cecile's virtue by having her friend Valmont (Colin Firth
) seduce Cecile. Valmont declines Merteuil's request because he is trying to lure Madame de Tourvel (Meg Tilly), a married guest of his aunt who is staying in the country while her husband is abroad. Merteuil chides Valmont in his conquest and the two place wagers. If Valmont succeeds in bedding Madame de Tourvel, he will be able to bed Merteuil. If he fails, Merteuil demands that he must join a monastery.
Although Merteuil does not have the charming libertine Valmont for assistance, she learns Cecile's music teacher, Danceny (Henry Thomas
), has been writing love letters to Cecile. Merteuil learns in confidence from Cecile that she loves Danceny.
Merteuil convinces her cousin to allow Cecile to join her in the country while helping Cecile write secret love letters to Danceny. The two of them join Valmont at his aunt's residence where he playfully flirts with Cecile. At the same time, Valmont is unsuccessful at his numerous attempts at wooing Tourvel. Someone has warned Tourvel of his sexual scheming and debauchery and Tourvel flees to the city to get away from Valmont's attempts to seduce her. Merteuil suggests Valmont should help Cecile write a letter and Valmont takes Cecile's virginity. When Cecile confides in Merteuil, Merteuil encourages her young cousin to marry Gercourt and keep Danceny as her lover.
Valmont goes to Tourvel and she returns his affections. In the morning she leaves for the market to prepare a meal for him but Valmont decides not to stay and goes to collect his prize from Merteuil. Merteuil refuses to honor her wager and Valmont leaves in a fury.
Valmont convinces Cecile to write Danceny explaining that Merteuil encourages Cecile to marry Gercourt and keep Danceny as her lover.
Tourvel later comes to Valmont and spends the night, leaving before he wakes the next morning.
Upon reading the letter, Danceny visits Merteuil. He has her compose a letter and threatens her. During this, Valmont visits Merteuil--who reveals she has herself seduced Danceny. Merteuil explains that she has informed Danceny of Valmont's treachery with respect to Cecile.
Danceny challenges Valmont to a duel set for the following morning. Valmont decides to drink himself to a stupor before the duel, allowing himself to be slain by Danceny.
Cecile discovers she is pregnant with Valmont's child. His aunt is overjoyed when Cecile shares her news. The film ends with Cecile's wedding to Gercourt with Merteuil watching on alone.
is missing a short sequence after Valmont wakes alone from his last night with Tourvel. In the sequence, Valmont takes flowers to Tourvel's home later the same day, but on arrival discovers that she is back with her husband. Unseen by either, he leaves the flowers on her bed before heading off to confront Merteuil. The sequence is included in the 2000 MGM VHS release, and is also in the high-definition transfer shown on MGM HD
.
According to user comments at IMDb the sequence is included on foreign DVD releases; and, according to Amazon.com the fullscreen Region 4 DVD is one minute longer than the widescreen
Region 1 DVD.
received mixed-to-positive reviews, and received a Metacritic score of 55. The film was not as highly acclaimed as Dangerous Liaisons
, which was released less than a year earlier. The film received praise from Roger Ebert
, who rated it three-and-a-half stars.
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed by Miloš Forman
Miloš Forman
Jan Tomáš Forman , better known as Miloš Forman , is a Czech-American director, screenwriter, professor, and an emigrant from Czechoslovakia. Two of his films, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Amadeus, are among the most celebrated in the history of film, both gaining him the Academy Award for...
, based on the French novel Les Liaisons Dangereuses
Les Liaisons Dangereuses
Les Liaisons dangereuses is a French epistolary novel by Choderlos de Laclos.Les Liaisons dangereuses may also refer to:* Les liaisons dangereuses , a 1959 film adapted by Claude Brulé and directed by Roger Vadim...
(1782
1782 in literature
-Events:* Charles Dibdin becomes joint manager of the Royal Circus, afterwards known as the Surrey Theatre.* William Blake first meets his patron, John Flaxman.* The Siku Quanshu is completed, the largest literary compilation in China's history...
) by Choderlos de Laclos
Pierre Choderlos de Laclos
Pierre Ambroise François Choderlos de Laclos was a French novelist, official and army general, best known for writing the epistolary novel Les Liaisons dangereuses ....
. It was adapted for the screen with a screenplay by Jean-Claude Carrière
Jean-Claude Carrière
Jean-Claude Carrière is a screenwriter and actor. Alumnus of the École normale supérieure de Saint-Cloud, he was a frequent collaborator with Luis Buñuel...
. The film stars Colin Firth
Colin Firth
SirColin Andrew Firth, CBE is a British film, television, and theatre actor. Firth gained wide public attention in the 1990s for his portrayal of Mr. Darcy in the 1995 television adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice...
, Annette Bening
Annette Bening
Annette Carol Bening is an American actress. Bening is a four-time Oscar nominee for her roles in The Grifters, American Beauty, Being Julia and The Kids Are All Right, winning Golden Globe Awards for the latter two films...
and Meg Tilly.
Valmont received an Academy Award
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
nomination for Best Costume Design
Academy Award for Costume Design
The Academy Award for Best Costume Design is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for achievement in film costume design....
(Theodor Pištěk).
Plot
Merteuil (Annette BeningAnnette Bening
Annette Carol Bening is an American actress. Bening is a four-time Oscar nominee for her roles in The Grifters, American Beauty, Being Julia and The Kids Are All Right, winning Golden Globe Awards for the latter two films...
) is a beautiful, wealthy widow in society discovers her secret lover Gercourt (Jeffrey Jones
Jeffrey Jones
Jeffrey Duncan Jones is an American actor. He has appeared in many films and television series, but may be best known for his roles as Emperor Joseph II in Miloš Forman’s Amadeus, Charles Deetz in Beetlejuice, and Dean of Students Edward R...
) is betrothed. Merteuil learns from her cousin Madame de Volanges (Siân Phillips
Siân Phillips
Jane Elizabeth Ailwên "Siân" Phillips, CBE, is a Welsh actress.-Early life:Phillips was born in Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen, Neath Port Talbot, Wales, the daughter of Sally , a teacher, and David Phillips, a steelworker-turned-policeman...
) that Gercourt's new fiancé is none other than Volanges' 15 year old daughter Cecile (Fairuza Balk
Fairuza Balk
Fairuza Alejandra Balk is an American film actress. She made her theatrical film debut as Dorothy Gale in Disney's Return to Oz...
). Volanges confides in Merteuil that Gercourt chose Cecile as she was raised in a convent to keep Cecile chaste before marriage. Volanges also admits there were worries over the betrothal as people were discussing Gercourt's former mistress's sanity.
Angered over the loss of her lover and his slight of her character, Merteuil plots to deface Cecile's virtue by having her friend Valmont (Colin Firth
Colin Firth
SirColin Andrew Firth, CBE is a British film, television, and theatre actor. Firth gained wide public attention in the 1990s for his portrayal of Mr. Darcy in the 1995 television adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice...
) seduce Cecile. Valmont declines Merteuil's request because he is trying to lure Madame de Tourvel (Meg Tilly), a married guest of his aunt who is staying in the country while her husband is abroad. Merteuil chides Valmont in his conquest and the two place wagers. If Valmont succeeds in bedding Madame de Tourvel, he will be able to bed Merteuil. If he fails, Merteuil demands that he must join a monastery.
Although Merteuil does not have the charming libertine Valmont for assistance, she learns Cecile's music teacher, Danceny (Henry Thomas
Henry Thomas
Henry Jackson Thomas, Jr. is an American actor and musician. He has appeared in more than 40 films and is best known for his role as Elliott in the 1982 Steven Spielberg film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.-Early life:...
), has been writing love letters to Cecile. Merteuil learns in confidence from Cecile that she loves Danceny.
Merteuil convinces her cousin to allow Cecile to join her in the country while helping Cecile write secret love letters to Danceny. The two of them join Valmont at his aunt's residence where he playfully flirts with Cecile. At the same time, Valmont is unsuccessful at his numerous attempts at wooing Tourvel. Someone has warned Tourvel of his sexual scheming and debauchery and Tourvel flees to the city to get away from Valmont's attempts to seduce her. Merteuil suggests Valmont should help Cecile write a letter and Valmont takes Cecile's virginity. When Cecile confides in Merteuil, Merteuil encourages her young cousin to marry Gercourt and keep Danceny as her lover.
Valmont goes to Tourvel and she returns his affections. In the morning she leaves for the market to prepare a meal for him but Valmont decides not to stay and goes to collect his prize from Merteuil. Merteuil refuses to honor her wager and Valmont leaves in a fury.
Valmont convinces Cecile to write Danceny explaining that Merteuil encourages Cecile to marry Gercourt and keep Danceny as her lover.
Tourvel later comes to Valmont and spends the night, leaving before he wakes the next morning.
Upon reading the letter, Danceny visits Merteuil. He has her compose a letter and threatens her. During this, Valmont visits Merteuil--who reveals she has herself seduced Danceny. Merteuil explains that she has informed Danceny of Valmont's treachery with respect to Cecile.
Danceny challenges Valmont to a duel set for the following morning. Valmont decides to drink himself to a stupor before the duel, allowing himself to be slain by Danceny.
Cecile discovers she is pregnant with Valmont's child. His aunt is overjoyed when Cecile shares her news. The film ends with Cecile's wedding to Gercourt with Merteuil watching on alone.
Missing scenes on region 1 DVD
The Region 1 DVD released in 2002 by MGMMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
is missing a short sequence after Valmont wakes alone from his last night with Tourvel. In the sequence, Valmont takes flowers to Tourvel's home later the same day, but on arrival discovers that she is back with her husband. Unseen by either, he leaves the flowers on her bed before heading off to confront Merteuil. The sequence is included in the 2000 MGM VHS release, and is also in the high-definition transfer shown on MGM HD
MGM HD
MGM HD is an all high-definition television channel. It features commercial-free movies from MGM's library of approximately 1,200 movies mastered in a high-definition-compatible format as well as feature films from their library of 4,100 theatrical titles...
.
According to user comments at IMDb the sequence is included on foreign DVD releases; and, according to Amazon.com the fullscreen Region 4 DVD is one minute longer than the widescreen
Widescreen
Widescreen images are a variety of aspect ratios used in film, television and computer screens. In film, a widescreen film is any film image with a width-to-height aspect ratio greater than the standard 1.37:1 Academy aspect ratio provided by 35mm film....
Region 1 DVD.
Variance from source text
The script of Valmont differs significantly from the text. In Laclos's novel, Cecile is raped by Valmont and suffers a miscarriage; in Valmont she is seduced willingly (the script goes so far as to have the character confirm that she enjoyed the encounter) and is pregnant at her wedding. The letters between Valmont and Merteuil that lead to Merteuil's downfall in the novel are not mentioned in the film; Merteuil has no downfall except in the eyes of Cecile and her mother. She also does not suffer from the physical disfigurement described by Laclos in the denouement. Madame de Tourvel's future is less tragic; instead of dying of a broken heart, she returns to her forgiving and understanding older husband.Cast
- Colin FirthColin FirthSirColin Andrew Firth, CBE is a British film, television, and theatre actor. Firth gained wide public attention in the 1990s for his portrayal of Mr. Darcy in the 1995 television adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice...
as Valmont - Annette BeningAnnette BeningAnnette Carol Bening is an American actress. Bening is a four-time Oscar nominee for her roles in The Grifters, American Beauty, Being Julia and The Kids Are All Right, winning Golden Globe Awards for the latter two films...
as Merteuil - Meg Tilly as Madame de Tourvel
- Fairuza BalkFairuza BalkFairuza Alejandra Balk is an American film actress. She made her theatrical film debut as Dorothy Gale in Disney's Return to Oz...
as Cecile de Volanges - Siân PhillipsSiân PhillipsJane Elizabeth Ailwên "Siân" Phillips, CBE, is a Welsh actress.-Early life:Phillips was born in Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen, Neath Port Talbot, Wales, the daughter of Sally , a teacher, and David Phillips, a steelworker-turned-policeman...
as Madame de Volanges - Jeffrey JonesJeffrey JonesJeffrey Duncan Jones is an American actor. He has appeared in many films and television series, but may be best known for his roles as Emperor Joseph II in Miloš Forman’s Amadeus, Charles Deetz in Beetlejuice, and Dean of Students Edward R...
as Gercourt - Henry ThomasHenry ThomasHenry Jackson Thomas, Jr. is an American actor and musician. He has appeared in more than 40 films and is best known for his role as Elliott in the 1982 Steven Spielberg film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.-Early life:...
as Danceny - Fabia DrakeFabia DrakeFabia Drake OBE was an English actress whose professional career spanned almost 73 years during the 20th century.Drake was born in Herne Bay, Kent...
as Madame de Rosemonde - T.P. McKenna as Baron
- Isla BlairIsla BlairIsla Blair is an India-born actress of British descent. She made her first stage appearance in 1963 as Philia in the London debut of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and her first credited film appearance in the 1965 horror film Dr. Terror's House of Horrors.- Biography :Isla Blair...
as Baroness - Ian McNeiceIan McNeiceIan McNeice is a prolific English screen, stage, and television character actor.-Early life:McNeice was born in Basingstoke in Hampshire. McNeice's acting training started at the Taunton School in Somerset, followed by two years at the Salisbury Playhouse...
as Azolan - Aleta MitchellAleta MitchellAleta Mitchell is an American film, television and theatre actress-Filmography:She has appeared in films including* Valmont , directed by Miloš Forman* Malcolm X , directed by Spike Lee-Television work:...
as Victoire - Ronald LaceyRonald LaceyRonald Lacey was an English actor. He made numerous television and film appearances over a 30 year period and is perhaps best remembered for his villainous roles in Hollywood films, most famously Major Arnold Toht in Raiders of the Lost Ark.-Career:Lacey attended Harrow Weald Grammar School and...
as José - Vincent SchiavelliVincent SchiavelliVincent Andrew Schiavelli was an American character actor noted for his work on stage, screen, and television often described as "the man with the sad eyes." He was notable for his numerous and often critically acclaimed cameo appearances.-Early life:Schiavelli was born in Brooklyn, New York, to a...
as Jean - Sandrine DumasSandrine DumasSandrine Dumas is a French film actress.Dumas was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine. She has appeared in Twice a Woman , Miloš Forman's Valmont, and Krzysztof Kieślowski's The Double Life of Véronique, among other films....
as Martine
Reception
ValmontValmont
Valmont may refer to various incarnations of the character in the story Les Liaisons dangereuses .*Vicomte Sébastien de Valmont, a character in the 1782 French novel Les Liaisons dangereuses by Choderlos de Laclos....
received mixed-to-positive reviews, and received a Metacritic score of 55. The film was not as highly acclaimed as Dangerous Liaisons
Dangerous Liaisons
Dangerous Liaisons is a 1988 drama film based upon Christopher Hampton's play, Les liaisons dangereuses, which in turn was a theatrical adaptation of the 18th-century French novel Les Liaisons dangereuses by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos....
, which was released less than a year earlier. The film received praise from Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
, who rated it three-and-a-half stars.