Tous Les Matins Du Monde

Alain Corneau’s film is a personal favourite of mine for the way in which it so elegantly unites wonderful music and beautiful visuals to create a seductively idealized image of a time long gone. It tells the story of the difficult relationship between the French 17th century musician and composer, M.Sainte Colombe (Jean-Pierre Marielle) and his far less talented, sometime pupil, Marin Marais, (played variously by Depardieu père & fils).

The 17th and 18th centuries are a period that the French do particularly well and Tous Les Matins Du Monde is an exemplary production with superb art direction, costume design, cinematography, lighting, locations and so on. Although the film is primarily about an evocation of a bygone time, its core theme, which deals with the conflict between artistic purity and worldly success provides an armature for a satisfying drama

Whilst the performance are of a high standard, the only weakness is Guillaume Depardieu who simply does not have the sensibility to pull off the role. Set this aside however and the film will be a delight, particularly for anyone who enjoys early classical music (Jordi Savall who played the music has since built a very successful career specializing in the period).

 

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