The Return Of Martin Guerre

1982, Movie, NR, 111 mins

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Set in 16th-century France, this engrossing period piece is based on existing records of an actual court case tried in a small village. Two youngsters, Martin Guerre and Bertrande de Rols, enter into a marriage of convenience at the behest of their peasant families. After a number of years, the strangely distant Martin disappears from the village, leaving behind his chaste, love-starved wife (Nathalie Baye). When Martin (Gerard Depardieu) returns, nine years later, he receives a warm welcome from the townsfolk and Bertrande, who has remained faithful to him. However, when Martin experiences occasional lapses of memory and fails to recognize faces, accusations fly--some of the villagers accusing him of being an impostor in the belief that the real Martin lost a leg in combat. Bertrande grows increasingly confused, at times defending her husband who has discovered a newfound affection for her, but on other occasions condemning him with her silence. The matter becomes even more confused when another man claiming to be Martin Guerre (Bernard Pierre Donnadieu) arrives in the village. One of the most successful art-house films of the 1980s, THE RETURN OF MARTIN GUERRE relies on two powerful performers--Depardieu, who is perfectly cast as the mysterious peasant, and Baye, whose demanding role calls for carefully measured silence and reserve. In his second cinematic outing, television director Daniel Vigne realized that he need only stick to the original facts to create a captivating film. Anne-Marie Marchand's costumes received an Oscar nomination. The year 1993 saw the release of SOMMERSBY, a bloodless American remake of MARTIN GUERRE starring Richard Gere and Jodie Foster. leave a comment
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The Return Of Martin Guerre
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