Directed by:
Gérard CorbiauCinematography:
Gérard SimonCast:
Benoît Magimel, Boris Terral, Tchéky Karyo, Colette Emmanuelle, Cécile Bois, Claire Keim, Jacques François, Ingrid Rouif, Sylvie Van den Elsen (more)Plots(1)
While Louis XIV had the longest reign of any French monarch and used his nation's military might to significantly expand his nation's control of Europe, he was also a noted patron of the arts with a particular love for dance, and this historical drama looks at the unlikely relationship between the King of France and noted 17th century composer Jean-Baptiste Lully. As a teenager, Louis XIV (played by Emil Tarding) was the ostensive ruler of France, but his mother Anne of Austria (Colette Emmanuelle) made most of the decisions, while Louis staged elaborate dance pieces set to the music of Lully (Boris Terral). When Lully was forced to leave Italy, he found an eager patron in young Louis, who loved his music and was fascinated by the flamboyant composer and his libertine ways. Years later, after Louis XIV had grown to adulthood, the more mature ruler (now played by Benoit Magimel) took control of France's political and military affairs, to the annoyance of the Prince de Conti (Idwig Stephane), who had been Anne of Austria's top advisor. But as Louis confronted his European neighbors, he also established a French dance academy and commissioned Lully to write a number of new dance scores. Lully's flamboyant nature and open infidelity with both men and women earned him the enmity of the more conservative members of Louis XIV's court, but the King remained Lully's champion until health problems began to affect his ability to dance - causing him to lose interest in performance, as well as in Lully's music. L (official distributor synopsis)
(more)Cast
Benoît Magimel
France
Best movies:
La Haine (1995)
The Taste of Things (2023)
Cloclo: The Legend of Jean François (2012)
Boris Terral
France
Best movies:
The King Is Dancing (2000)
Blind Date (2015)
Pédale douce (1996)
Tchéky Karyo
Turkey
Best movies:
The Bear (1988)
La Femme Nikita (1990)
GoldenEye (1995)
Colette Emmanuelle
Best movies:
The King Is Dancing (2000)
Gilles' Wife (2004)
My Angel (2004)
Cécile Bois
France
Best movies:
Germinal (1993)
The King Is Dancing (2000)
Maigret (1991) (series)
Claire Keim
France
Best movies:
The Green Beautiful (1996)
The King Is Dancing (2000)
Le Grand Restaurant (2010) (TV movie)
Jacques François
France
Best movies:
The Day of the Jackal (1973)
The Barkleys of Broadway (1949)
Royal Affairs in Versailles (1954)
Ingrid Rouif
Best movies:
The King Is Dancing (2000)
Sylvie Van den Elsen
Best movies:
The Bohemian Life (1992)
An Affair of Love (1999)
L'argent (1983)
Philippe Brizard
France
Best movies:
Order of the Daisy (1967)
The Phantom of Liberty (1974)
Jupiter's Thigh (1980)
Guy Pion
Belgium
Best movies:
The King Is Dancing (2000)
Jean-Louis Sbille
Best movies:
Mina Tannenbaum (1994)
The King Is Dancing (2000)
La Chance de ma vie (2011)
Serge Feuillard
Best movies:
L'Impure (1991) (TV movie)
Tales of the Night (2011)
My American Uncle (1980)
Alain Eloy
Best movies:
No Man's Land (2001)
The King Is Dancing (2000)
Deux jours, une nuit (2014)
Johan Leysen
Belgium
Best movies:
Swing Kids (1993)
Train of Life (1998)
Queen Margot (1994)
Vincent Grass
Belgium
Best movies:
Hornblower: The Even Chance (1998) (TV movie)
Ernest & Celestine (2012)
Sharpe's Enemy (1994) (TV movie)
Nikita Wokurka
Germany
Best movies:
The King Is Dancing (2000)
Wild Chicks in Love (2007)
Das Traumschiff (1981) (series)
Gérard Boucaron
Best movies:
The Wing and the Thigh (1976)
Going Places (1974)
La Grande Bouffe (1973)
René Morard
Best movies:
My New Partner (1984)
Les Misérables (1982)
The Scoundrel (1971)
Michel Alexandre
Best movies:
The King Is Dancing (2000)
Le Cousin (1997)
La Fille de d'Artagnan (1994)