BLANCHE

France, 1971, 92 minutes, Colour.
Michel Simon, Georges Wilson, Jacques Perrin, Ligia Branice.
Directed by Walerian Borowczyk.

Blanche is based on an epic poem, Mazepa, written by Juliusz Slowacki, who lived from 1809 to 1849, born in the Russian empire in what is now Ukraine. (The epic was also filmed in Poland in 1976.)

The film was directed by Walerian Borowcsyck, a celebrated if controversial director. He was born in Poland, 1923, and died in Paris in 2006. He trained as a painter and lithographer and began making films in the 1940s. However, he moved to France and made a number of films during the 1960s. Blanche is the culmination of this kind of film-making. After Blanche, he began to be much more interested in sexuality, even pornography, and made a number of striking films, especially during the 1970s which created quite an amount controversy including Immoral Tales (1974), The Story of a Sin (1975), The Beast (1975), Behind Convent Walls (1977), Lulu (1980).

This film is much more straightforward. It focuses on a young woman, the wife of an older king in a castle in a faraway land. Everybody is in love with her or infatuated with her. What follows is tragic clashes – with only the king surviving.

The film has veteran Michel Simon as the old master of the castle, the husband of Blanche. Georges Wilson is the king. The film is excellent in its re-creation of the Middle Ages, the style of life in the castle, the peasants in the surrounding countryside, the austerity of this way of life.

The film won the Interfilm (Protestant association) award at the 1972 Berlin film festival.

1. The overall impact of this film? How striking, why was it striking? Enjoyment, interest, fear and revulsion?

2. The French origins of the film in production, actors, setting, original novel from the 19th century? The vision of a Polish migrant director? The director and the tradition of his films with the attention to people imprisoned, the strangeness and alienation in the world, people as objects and victims of passion, the great attention to environment, the attention to detail, especially objects and symbols in rooms?

3. The importance of 13th century France for atmosphere and setting: the importance of the colour, grim colour? The expectations and background of pageantry, costume? The austerity and harshness of the castle, the, people, their way of life? The castle with its exteriors and interiors? An atmosphere of royalty and hierarchy of power? An enclosed world? The contrast with the countryside with its beauty and its awesome grimness? The images and the juxtaposition of detailed images? The importance of the medieval music, singing, strident melodies and tones. falsetto singing? What was the overall medieval atmosphere?

4. Audience response to these settings in terms of fairy tales, romance and heroism? The contrast with the Grimm stories of giants and evil in castles? A blending of these styles for this particular story? The castle as a microcosm, the story as a fable about life? The importance of the distancing of time and the land for a 20th century audience? Nevertheless the value of the fable in revealing the nature of relationships, power, imprisonment within one's environment and people's responses?

5. The significance of the castle: its appearance, its charming aspects, its foreboding, its protection, as a fortress? The Baron an a personality ruling this castle, at home within this castle? His kindly aspects, ogre? The King and his administration of the land, from a society which was represented by such castles? The rules of behaviour and the norms and values of a castle way of life?

6. Blanche within the castle? The symbol of the dove within the prison bars? The whiteness of Blanche’s name and appearance? Whiteness and innocence? The fairy princess and the imprisoned princess? The wife of the Baron of the castle? The object of lust and aggression on the part of the King? Nicolas, Bartolomeo? Her experience of prison and suspicion rather than her innocence? The inevitability of this kind of castle killing the dove?

7. How interesting in terms of character study, themes were the juxtapositions of the environment, the incidents and details of the way of life of each of the characters? The moral comment by such juxtaposition?

8. The character of the Baron, his way of rule, the age difference with Blanche? His style?

9. Blanche and her innocence, the bath sequence, the importance of her dressing, her properness, hostess? Victim of lust and aggression? Her extricating herself and retirement to her bedroom? The victim of the Baron's suspicions? Being put in the dungeon? Her innocence, the inevitability of her decision about her death - the pathos of her contemplating the poison and drinking it? Can innocence survive in such a world?

10. The Baron and his downfall, jealousy, the evil elicited from his jealousy? His attitude towards Bartolomeo, the King? His aggression towards Bartolomeo? His injustice towards Blancho? His finally being appalled at the destruction, especially of Nicolas? The inevitability of his death? How innocent a man was he, innocence being destroyed within this world?

11. The personality of the King, the preparations for his arrival, his place in the hierarchy of rule and power? His lustful response to Blanche, his pursuing her? His entry to her room, the gash? His face being saved by Bartolomeo? ilia reaction to Bartolomeo’s being walled up? The irony of prayer being the occasion for such a discovery? His attitude towards Blanche, plans for taking her away? Bartolomeo thwarting his plans? How much was the King's power and lust, which was in control of castle and people, the reason for such destruction?

12. How important a character was Bartolomeo for the plot and for the themes? As a charming young man, womaniser? His reputation, his advance preparation for the King? His loyalty and gashing his hand for the sake of the King, incurring the wrath of the Baron? The importance of his hiding in Blanche's room and the irony of his being walled up, the irony of the King rescuing him, yet the irony of the King causing his destruction because of the note and Bartolomeo’s interception and decision? His fighting for Blanche, attacking Nicolas?

13. How realistic a figure and symbolic a figure was Nicolas? Enclosed, inbred affection? As the son of his father, his devotion to Blanche, his willingness to die on her behalf?

14. The seeming triumph of good with the thwarting of the King's evil? but its only being a temporary success? Was the success of goodness ever possible?

15. Audience sympathies towards the end for King, Baron, Nicolas?

16. Audience response to Blanche's destruction? The final symbol of the dove - symbol. significance?

17. The ugliness of the ending with the torment and torture of Bartolomeo, the incessant galloping, the circular punishment? Hell and purgatory images? A pessimistic ending?

18. The film presenting a microcosm of universal good and evil, victims, cruelty, power and jealousy?