Farewell, My Queen

Saturday, March 3, 2012

SOLD OUT! Director in person! Direct from its World Premiere as Opening Night at this year’s Berlin Film Festival, the new film from director Benoît Jacquot (A Single Girl, Deep in the Woods) brilliantly captures the passions, debauchery, occasional glimpses of nobility and ultimately the chaos that engulfed the court of Marie Antoinette in the final days before the full-scale outbreak of the Revolution. Based on the best-selling novel by Chantal Thomas, the film stars Léa Seydoux as one of Marie’s ladies-in-waiting, seemingly an innocent but quietly working her way into her mistress’s special favors, until history tosses her fate onto a decidedly different path. As the action moves effortlessly between the gilded drawing rooms of the nobles and the back quarters of those who serve them, rarely has a period film felt no only so accurate but so positively lived in. Diane Kruger is simply terrific as the ill-fated Queen and Virginie Ledoyen, as the Queen’s special friend Gabrielle de Polignac, gives her finest performance in years.

Part of Rendez-Vous with French Cinema 2012

Tickets are still available to BAMcinématek’s show of FAREWELL, MY QUEEN Mar 4 at 6:00pm. Click here for more information.

  • Country France
  • Language In French with English subtitles
  • Rating NR
  • Running Time 97 minutes
  • Director Benoit Jacquot

IFC Center does not generally provide advisories about subject matter or potentially triggering content in films, as sensitivities vary from person to person. In addition to the synopses, trailers and other links on our website, further information about content and age-appropriateness for specific films can be found on Common Sense Media, IMDb and DoesTheDogDie.com as well as through general internet searches.