The Bridge of San Luis Rey (2004)

Note Générale:

5,0/10   

Réalisateur:

Mary McGuckian

Scénaristes:

Mary McGuckian (writer)
Thornton Wilder (novel)

Date de sortie:

22 décembre 2004 (Spain)

Genre:

Drame

Accroche:

Five Lives Bound By One Fate.

Intrigue:

Five people are killed in a freak accident when a lofty rope bridge collapses. The film details a priest's...

Plot Keywords:

Rope Bridge | Remake | Stage Actress | Pulitzer Prize Source | Martyr

Récompenses:

1 win

Avis des utilisateurs:

Love is the Bridge Between This Life and the Next

Ensemble

F. Murray Abraham	...	Viceroy of Peru
Kathy Bates	...	The Marquesa
Gabriel Byrne	...	Brother Juniper
Geraldine Chaplin	...	The Abbess
Robert De Niro	...	Archbishop of Peru
Émilie Dequenne	...	Doña Clara
Adriana Domínguez	...	Pepita
Harvey Keitel	...	Uncle Pio
Samuel Le Bihan	...	Dona Clara's Husband
Pilar López de Ayala	...	Camila Villegas (La Perichola)
John Lynch	...	Captain Alvarado
Dominique Pinon	...	His Excellency's Fop
Mark Polish	...	Manuel
Michael Polish	...	Esteban
Jim Sheridan	...	The King of Spain

Autre(s) titre(s):

El puente de San Luis Rey (Spain)
Le pont du roi Saint-Louis (France)

MPAA:

Rated PG for thematic elements, some disturbing images and some sensuality.

Durée:

120 min

Pays:

Spain | UK | France

Langue:

Anglais

Couleur:

Couleur

Rapport de forme:

1,85 : 1

Son:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Classification:

Singapore:PG | Hungary:14 | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Brazil:10 | Netherlands:12 | Spain:13 | USA:PG

Lieux de tournage:

Málaga, Andalucía, Spain

Société:

Tribeca Productions

Connexions:

Références La périchole, la chanteuse et le dictateur (2000) (TV)

Love is the Bridge Between This Life and the Next

Thorton Wilder's novel of ruminations about the quality of love and the extremes to which it can be played out is more of a philosophical meditation than a story and this is probably the reason many people feel upended by Mary McGuckian's film, a project she both adapted for the screen and directed. If this film seems a bit on the static side there is a reason: the tale is a testimony before court by Brother Juniper (Gabriel Byrne) about his investigation into the deaths of five people when the rope bridge of San Luis Rey outside Lima, Peru collapsed. Brother Juniper stands before the Archbishop of Peru (Robert De Niro) and the Viceroy of Peru (F. Murray Abraham) and poses the question as to whether the incident was an act of God or just a simple accident.

In order to present his case he has researched the lives of the five who died (mentioning those five would ruin the suspense of the story). We learn about The Marquesa (Kathy Bates) whose daughter has departed for Spain to marry well (the Marquesa is starving for the love of her estranged daughter); the kindhearted Abbess (Geraldine Chaplin) who gives refuge to the unwanted including identical twin men Manuel and Esteban (the mute Mark and Michael Polish) and Pepita (Adriana Domínguez). We also meet Uncle Pio (Harvey Keitel) who serves as a harlequin for the court and raises Camila Villegas AKA La Perichola (Pilar López de Ayala) who loves the stage and the accoutrements more than she loves Uncle Pio. Through the kindness of the Abbess, Pepita is loaned to the Marquesa's household as a surrogate daughter, the twins share their devotion to the court until a tragedy separates them, La Perichola is impregnated by the Viceroy and banned from the city (she raises her little boy, hiding from the world because of her post-partum smallpox disfigurement), and Uncle Pio eventually assumes responsibility of the child out of fatherly love. Five of these people who are true to love's power cross the fateful bridge. Brother Juniper is condemned by the Inquisition for his treason and the meaning of the story is revealed.

The cast is heavy on big names and while they make the most out of the stiff script, they never really touch us the way Wilder's novel characters did. But the trappings of the film are grand and accurately portrayed, the scenery is beautiful, and the costumes are some of the finest period costumes in many a film. This is one of those films that requires careful concentration from the audience, a willingness to not be disturbed by the at times static proscenium stage feeling of the setting, but the rewards of understanding the message are great. There are some fine performances here and the film is definitely worth seeing. It is more demanding than most films - and that is just fine! Grady Harp