CYRANO DE BERGERAC

US, 1950, 112 minutes, Black and white.
Jose Ferrer, Mala Powers, William Prince, Morris Carnovsky, Ralph Clanton, Virginia Farmer, Elena Verdugo.
Directed by Michael Gordon.

Cyrano de Bergerac comes from the famous play by Edmond Rostand. Produced by Stanley Kramer in the period when he acted as producer for such films as The Men, Member of the Wedding, Death of a Salesman, the film was directed by Michael Gordon. The screenplay was by Carl Foreman, who worked on so many films like The Victors, The Guns of Navarone and Born Free. The musical score was by Dimitri Tiomkin who had many successful scores at this time including High Noon and The High and the Mighty. The film is artificially staged and very much studio-bound. However, it had great success insofar as Jose Ferrer won the Oscar for the Best Actor of 1950. Ferrer had moved from the stage to screen with such films as Joan of Arc. He was to become a very successful actor and director.

1. What was the main impact of this film? Interest, enjoyment, curiosity piece?

2. Comment on the film's style: was it too stagebound, or was it well adapted to the screen? The quality of the dialogue, its wordiness and wit? The impact of words? The 17th century atmosphere of sets and costume and manners? The French background and the way this was communicated?

3. Jose Ferrer won the Oscar for this performance? Did the performance merit this award? Why? What were its main characteristics? The reasons for its success? Did the performance match the film?

4. what was the purpose of making this film? Did the film present a real world, a representation of a historical period and characters? How artificial was the world presented? How important was this artificiality? What were the important themes presented in the film: self-image, self-worth, pride, fear, the discovery of being oneself etc.? Were these the main themes? What other themes were prominent? Were they well presented in this film?

5. What kind of a person was Cyrano? Did he seem real, credible? As a man, the explanation of his background, career, style? Cyrano as a figure? A symbol? A strong man and a weak man? The reasons for his strength and weakness, his attitudes towards himself, the truth, his feelings? The significance of his nose? The importance of his drawing attention to it, the long speech about the different approaches to his nose, the nose as symbolising his self-image and self-worth? Was this a successful device, his focus on the nose?

6. The impact of the theatre sequence at the beginning? Cyrano's presentation of himself, in society, his attitude towards the artificiality of the performer, the political overtones, his sword-play, giving his money away as a gesture for the moment even though it entailed poverty? The importance of the sequence of his fighting a hundred men? His sword skill, his self-assertion?

7. How did this contrast with the image of himself where Roxanne was concerned? Why did he lower his estimation of himself? Become insecure? The importance of the sequence where Roxanne asked for his help? His decision to remain in the background and not reveal his love?

8. The contrast of his meetings with Christian? The initial talks and his wanting to fight him, his submerging his own feelings for the sake of someone Roxanne loved?

9. How credible was his wooing of Roxanne for Christian? The contrast of the inarticulate handsome man with the articulate ugly man? The point being made by this? Roxanne’s love for the real man? The wooing by letter, teaching Christian to memorise lines, Roxanne's response? The importance of the balcony sequence where Cyrano's real sentiments take over, Roxanne's response to this, the irony of the truth?

10. The impact of the battle sequences? How real? How artificial? Cyrano's writing and delivering the letters? The importance for Roxane and Christian?

11. The dramatic impact of Roxanne’s being present at the battle, the effect on Cyrano, the truth for Christian?

12. How noble was the gesture of Christian going to die? Leaving the choice for Roxanne? Discovering the truth? Dying happy with the aid of Cyrano? The message in this gesture of Cyrano?

13. How well did the sequences of the aftermath of these events-fit in with the previous part of the film? Cyrano's satires, political stirring, assassination? The contrast then with visiting Roxanne every Saturday, her retirement into her memories?

14. How poignant was the scene of Cyrano’s death? The visit to Roxanne, chatting with the nuns, his recounting the gossip, the inevitability of his death, his reciting the final letter, the discovery of the truth? The sentiment expressed in this, how well incorporated into the feeling of the film? Audience response to this final revelation of the truth?

15. How valuable a film was this? Or, with its artificiality and remoteness, does it seem a curiosity piece?