Bluebeard (2009)
"Barbe bleue" (original title)

An adaptation of the classic tale of a wealthy aristocrat with a blue beard.

Director:

Catherine Breillat

Writers:

Charles Perrault (fairy tale "La Barbe bleue"), Catherine Breillat (screenplay)

Stars:

Dominique Thomas, Lola Créton, Daphné Baiwir

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dominique Thomas	...	Barbe Bleue / Bluebeard
Lola Créton	...	Marie-Catherine
Daphné Baiwir	...	Anne
Marilou Lopes-Benites	...	Catherine
Lola Giovannetti	...	Marie-Anne
Farida Khelfa	...	La mère supérieure
Isabelle Lapouge	...	La mère
Suzanne Foulquier	...	Soeur Barbe
Laure Lapeyre	...	Ida
Luc Bailly	...	Le minot
Adrien Ledoux	...	L'émissaire de Barbe Bleue
Jacques Triau	...	L'évêque
Jean Bourlot	...	Le cocher
Rose-Line Fric	...	La couturière
Christian Urbain	...	Le créancier

Storyline

An adaptation of the classic tale of a wealthy aristocrat with a blue beard.

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Plot Keywords:

aristocrat | beard | belief in heaven | spiral staircase | lord | 

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Genres:

Fantasy

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Flach film [fr]

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

1 April 2010 (South Korea)

Also Known As:

Bluebeard

Filming Locations:

Limousin, France

Box Office

Budget:

$2,400,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$8,370 (USA) (26 March 2010)

Gross:

$32,363 (USA) (14 May 2010)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Flach Film, CB Films, Arte France

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Version of Bluebeard (1936)

User Reviews

Disappointing Film from the Director

Blue Beard (2009)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

Incredibly disappointing adaptation of Charles Perrault's fairy tale has sisters Marie-Catherine (Lola Creton) and Anne (Daphne Baiwir) being taken out of a rich school after the death of their family. Moving back with their mother, the three are now desperately poor and this is when they're invited to the castle of Lord Bluebeard (Dominique Thomas) and soon after Marie-Cathrine agrees to marry him. This story has been told countless times before but I had high hopes going into this one because I'm always impressed with the work of director Catherine Breillat. I'm sure some might be able to say this film spoke to them or that it was deep in some fashion but to me it was just a complete mess from start to finish and the worst thing is that it's totally lifeless. I'm really not sure what the director was trying to do here but no matter what the goal was it certainly didn't succeed. I was rather shocked to see how lifeless the picture was as it doesn't contain a bit of energy and after a while the viewer just grows tired of the slow pacing. Even worse is that this thing clocks in at 78-minutes, which feels twice as long. It was impossible to care about either of the sisters and all the flashbacks to a couple girls playing in an attic just doesn't work or add anything to the picture. The one thing I did like about the film were the performances. I thought Creton was very effective in the role of the strong sister who will stop at nothing to get what she wants. I also thought Thomas was extremely good as the ogre Bluebeard. He brought a certain sympathetic nature to the role that I thought worked very well. With that said, the film is a major letdown and it's a real shame because it should have been much, much better.