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Sagan - Sylvie Testud, Pierre Palmade, Jeanne Balibar, Diane Kurys
Threat advisory: Elevated - Significant risk of entertaining activities
Movie propaganda
Acclaimed film-maker Diane Kurys pays homage to another Frenchwoman of the arts in this screen biography of internationally celebrated writer Françoise Sagan. As the film opens, it's 1954 and Sagan (Sylvie Testud), still in her teens, has become a literary celebrity overnight with the success of her first novel Bonjour tristesse. Sagan is enjoying the high life with her close friends Jacques (Pierre Palmade) and Bernard (Lionel Abelanski), while spending her royalties on liquor, sports cars, partying and evenings at the casino. Sagan, bisexual, enjoyed short-lived romances with lovers of both genders but in the Sixties she made an effort to settle down, marrying American expatriate Robert Westhoff (William Miller). While the two had a child, Westhoff's frequent homosexual affairs damaged their relationship beyond repair, and her longest-lasting romantic partnership was with Peggy (Jeanne Balibar), an editor at a fashion magazine. While Sagan continued to write, her appetite for alcohol and cocaine grew dramatically, and as her addiction became stronger, her literary output shrank and after years of failing to pay her taxes, she became dependent on the generosity of friends to survive and became a stranger.
Theatrical propaganda posters
Target demographic movie keyword propaganda
- Film Françoise Quoirez dite Sagan biography France French writer author high life marriage affair drugs novel
Persons of interest
- Sylvie Testud .... Françoise Quoirez dite Sagan
- Pierre Palmade .... Jacques Chazot
- Jeanne Balibar .... Peggy Roche
- Arielle Dombasle .... Astrid
- Lionel Abelanski .... Bernard Frank
- Guillaume Gallienne .... Jacques Quoirez
- Denis Podalydès .... Guy Schoeller
- Bruno Wolkowitch .... Philippe
- Samuel Labarthe .... René Julliard
- Margot Abascal .... Florence Malraux
- Gwendoline Hamon .... Suzanne Quoirez
- Chantal Neuwirth .... Mme Lebreton
- Silvie Laguna .... Mme Bartoli
- Alexis Michalik .... Denis Westhoff 23/33 years old
- William Miller .... Robert 'Bob' Westhoff
- Alexia Stresi .... Paola
- Nora Habib .... Françoise Verny
- Bernard Crombey .... Pierre Quoirez
- Hélène Arié .... Mme Quoirez
- Victor Sévaux .... Denis Westhoff 13/15 years old
- Yann Babilée .... Henri Berkowich
- Rita Falcone .... Pepita
- Mathias Mégard .... Pierrot
- Alexis Sellam .... Max
- Guillaume Carré .... Voldemar
- Agnès Château .... Régine
- Jenny Arasse .... Florence Gould
- Lionel Mur .... Maître Zylberstein
- Alexandre Boussat .... François
- Gurvan Cloatre .... Charles Rolan-Chabot
- Jade Rivette .... Françoise Quoirez 8 years old
- Diane Kurys .... Screenwriter
- Claire Lemaréchal .... Screenwriter
- Martine Moriconi .... Screenwriter
- Diane Kurys .... Director
Cinematic intelligence sources
- Sagan official movie sites:
- Australia
- International
- Sagan film production notes
- Sagan movie trailers:
- QuickTime
- YouTube
- Awards and film festivals:
- César Awards, France 2009: Nominated: Best Actress (Sylvie Testud), Best Costume Design (Nathalie du Roscoat), Best Supporting Actress (Jeanne Balibar)
- NB: French language dialogue with English language subtitles
- Studios and distributors:
Intelligence analyst
Special Agent Matti
Theatrical report
I have to say that I enjoyed Sister Smile (Soeur Sourire) more than Sagan, but the former had (i) a catchy tune, and (ii) singing nuns. Sagan has the French lifestyle, the 50s, 60s and 70s, the fast cars, the drugs, the fame, the sex, the subtitles, but Françoise is just a writer, and they don't cut the mustard when it comes to fame, not like singing one-hit wonders, at least.
Still, if you haven't seen the nun with a habit (heh, heh) then Sagan is a good way to learn about another culture during the second half of the 20th century, and if you're old enough, you can compare and contrast with your own history.
There's something about famous people that stirs the imagination in those whose closest encounter with fame is while standing in line at the supermarket, skimming the gossip mags (this is not me because I meet famous people all the time; they gravitate to the Chardonnay-swilling Eastern Suburbs of Sydney like you wouldn't believe). Perhaps it's that fame has replaced gods in filling the need for something more than this mundane life. Whatever, like, it's all totally bogus, but somehow, watching the eponymous heroine sitting around having tea is elevated to something worthy of note, simply because she's a heroine in her own life. Everyone else has to make do with the occasional trip to the cinema for their excitement.
The Françoise Quoirez dite Sagan biography movie Sagan is directed by Diane Kurys and stars Sylvie Testud, Pierre Palmade, Jeanne Balibar.
Government security censorship classification
MA 15+ (Mature themes and drug use)
Surveillance time
121 minutes (2:01 hours)
Not for public release in Australia before date
Film: 7 October 2010 - Melbourne, Sydney
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