Sunday, June 28, 2009





"In a game of seduction never fall in love."
-Colette



Last night I viewed the Stephen Frears' film Cheri. It was a beautiful adaptation of the novels Cheri and Le fin de Cheri by Colette. Capturing the beauty of the "Belle Epoque" Frears had the help of Michelle Pfeiffer who looked younger than her real age as the aging Courtesan Lea de Lonval. Pfeiffer and Kathy Bates as Madame Peloux, the mother of Cheri, are excellent in their roles.
Cheri is played well by a photogenic Rupert Friend who I have previously seen as Joan Plowright's young friend in Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont (a film I would also highly recommend). I must also recommend the musical score for Cheri by Alexandre Desplat who has won awards for several of his previous film scores including The Queen and The Beat that my Heart Skipped (another of my favorite films). Overall this film version of Colette's novels is a delightful film that I enjoyed so much I will probably see it again.

2 comments:

Lisa said...

I was planning to see this film and only just last week I recorded Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont on DVR (I'd never heard of it, but had a hunch it would be good). Thanks for the recommendations!

James said...

Your welcome! Mrs. Palfrey is great mainly due to the performance of Dame Joan. In Cheri I found Michelle Pfeiffer to be irresistible in her role as the aging courtesan.