Intro
Angelique, the beauty that can make the kingdoms fall.
And boy did they manage to find that beauty. Mercier who played Angelique to me always was an unfathomable beauty, she had this completely perfect features with no dead end, absolutely gorgeous face, beautiful brows, lovely nose and unique shape of her lips. The camera and lighting gave her body a beautiful powdery effect. Let's not avoid the fact that this movie openly had nudity, but not the Holywood typ of show it all, those are smart shots from the back or side shots, but you can't see anything. She had things in place, because her thinnest waist was real, yet she had enough volume in places that needed it. She had that look that could bend you into a mosquito coil. Her gorgeous face and gorgeous figure truly could show what a "beauty that could defeat any man" means. To me she in this movie is the embodiment of a female leading character in a historical romance novel. Though it doesn't mean you won't have questions about some of her actions, I had a ton.
Now. Who is Angelique to me? I see her as a sort of femme fatale, since her beauty that is unparalleled is her blessing, but also her own curse, because of her beauty she found her real happiness in the face of her first husband - Jeoffrey de Peyrac (I personally call them Beauty and the Beast)). And it was also her beauty that made her target of many men who fell in love with her at first sight when she was left alone. Tbh I see the following lovers of Angelique as men for comparison, they were different, most of them were handsome and healthy, unlike Jeoffrey, but only he gave her true happiness, was the kindest, which made her always keep that love in her heart and seek justice for him in ways she found possible.
Funnily the stereotypes that were portrayed in the movies were the ones that were quite popular. But some of them we'd call toxic in our days. Angelique herself could be said to be a stereotyped herione of a historical romance novel. She's a beauty, although she has her own character, but she's not without her own fragility. She's also full of emotion.
There is one thing that is unfortunate about the timeline and montage. Since there's no mentioning of ages or even showing dates sometimes it's really hard to tell how many years passed. I think only by judging the age of her kids it may be a little clearer, but in general this jumping from here to here is like glazing over things, which made many parts a bit shallow. I must say I mostly supplemented the story with my own thoughts when time changed. As a result it often felt like "beauty defeats it all" when it came the first meeting between Angelique and different men who fell for her instantly, but only those who had more screen time felt like more complete characters.
I personally haven't read the novels themselves, but judging by number of them I can say that a lot of it was cut out, since it was impossible to implement everything, what they did was quite a lot for me already. Oh yeah and also for the story it was unnecessary I think, not to mention the source was not over yet.
Before I start about my notes on these movies I'd like to point out one thing - production. It can't be compared to the modern production, since back then everything was done with hands and all people you see are real and not generated. Plus let's not forget the work of extras, which sometimes was outright dangerous. Several parts in these movies were empressive, like the fire in the tavern with collapsing roof, like the caravan consisting of hundreds of camels, I don't say that in many scenes there was a ton of extras who worked at the same time. There were scenes in the sea, like stunt men fell from heights that were dangerous. In short, it is impressive.
Now onto few thoughts of mine.
Movie 1. Angélique, marquise des anges
To me the first movie has a strong sense of 'Beauty and the Beast' type of story. Joeffrey as the husbund of Angelique was rumored to be old and scarred sorcerer, which left her terrified about her own future. She despised her new fate and new house despite the riches that Joeffrey could give her. Only with time she started to open up and stopped her prejudice, which in the end let her realize that her husband is actually kind and wants to give her the world. His personality isn't eccentric, he's a pure adcenturer and scientist, the world gave him knowledge and he was ahead of times, which surely brought him rumors and he was feared.
Honestly, her face is simply amazing. And also if you watch all the movies together you'll realize how many beauty shots she got, not to mention the 'lying down on smth' ones.
Their happiness lasted for several years, presumably, since in the background she gave birth to a child and we had seen him walk for the first time. And the fall came suddenly due to convenience of the plot actually. And many ppl say that modern literature uses it, it's all convenience and everywhere. Anyway, in her early years she eavesdropped on a plan to kill the king, she was lucky to steal the chest containing poison and the list of traitors, funnily she hid it less than 20 meters away from where she stole it, in the space below the window. She talked about it to Joeffrey and was heard, so to make her weak and vulnerable they started from her husband. With faked process and chargess he was sentenced, Angelique was left with nothing (honestly, never say such things openly, who would do that). Luckily finding her old good friend Nicolas they thought they'd be able to save Joeffrey (but thing aren't that easy in novels, so no). Things were changed and they were late, all they could see were flames, so Angelique believed that her husband died in flames. Left with nothing, including the riches and houses and her title, she became part of the Paris bandits led by Nicolas.
The notable character that will follow through the next movies but changing his status would be François Desgrez, he protected Joeffrey in court, but was powerless in the end, later changed careers to police.
Movie 2. Merveilleuse Angélique
After witnessing the execution of her husband, with the help of Nicolas Angelique now searches for her children. Nicolas has a dream to leave to the new world one day, for this purpose they rob many rich people every day, to share with others in the gang, but leave enough to leave and live a good life. Nicolas, as one who had a close relationship with her, becomes her first man after her husband. I must say, it is not said, but due to the age of her found children (yeah, she was pregnant when everything happened) we can judge that enough time passed. I basically see it as her wanting to seek comfort, because parting with her husband hurt her so much. Enough said that before when she was still between nobles she was eyes by many of them, including the king himself. It was glazed over, but the first movie flinches over an accident that happened to Angelique (when she was violated when trying to flee from murderers, seeking help from those who wear noble clothes and are suppose to be gentlemen, but got violence in return).
Unfortunately, during a gang fight that broke out, Nicolas was shot and died (the counter of her dead lovers was opened). Their entire gang broke up, Angelique instead managed to get out and save her children. She seeks shelter in a tavern, which was almost dilapitated. With her wit she revived the place and basically turned to business. It was her first step outside of poverty and free life. At least I think that now Angelique realized that some things should be done by herself, instead of waiting for a man. She also meets a poet, with whom she had a fleeting relationship.
Their tavern was targeted and the nobles who came around crashed and bashed everything. The sad event was a cruel murder of the boy Angelique brought with her when she saved her children from kidnappers. Only one person from the nobles tried to stop everything, but the one who killed the child was a brother to the king. This also has the fire scene, which I found quite impressive. The poet Angelique was acquainted started to reveal the list of nobles one by one, but was caught and hanged before the final reveal. Angelique could have finished the job, but chose the compromise, receiving her property back, money and a patent for chocolate. The fight against nobility seemed powerless. Angelique was down too, all these men died for her and she was hollowed out, only Desgrez helped her get her spirit back, despite changing his own status he always stayed a good friend.
Angelique picked herself up and became a business woman. Here again I have a question, since I have no idea how long passes, but it felt like she opened shops in many provinces, she also was rich enough to get a ship.
Here, she was still followed by a shadow of revenge. She chose her cousine Philippe de Plessis-Bellières as her future husband. I see this as reaching her goal, to get a high enough status to stand against those she couldn't touch before.
Philippe and her also had a long story, he always acted as a playboy, had a lavish lifestyle, played and lost money, and although he had debts he still played, because that's the style. He was also quite toxic, since he was quite chovinistic at times. Especially repulsed when she bought his house back. She had money, he had title, yet he still was hanging on his noble pride. Tbh they're kinda in this love-hate relationship. He refused her at first, but was caught up in the old story about the chest with poison. Angelique was hurt that when he finally came after her it wasn't for her, she refused, but later agreed if they get married and she gets what she wants. During the process of reading the agreement she simply returns the chest without finishing and leaves, she's repulsed by everything. Destroying the chest Philippe sees Angelique leaving as she promised. Wanting to get things back Philippe sends flowers and jewellery, but nothing works, in the end he arranges for her to come to Versailles and asks for marriage in front of the king, which he allows. Although Angelique changed her name, the king still recognizes her. Angelique accepts Philippe and although she still has part of her heart that belongs to Joeffrey, she steps out of that shadow. In the books, summary of which I skimmed through, if I'm not wrong they also had children. But the movies didn't add it and I can understand why, kids actually rarely appeared on screen.
Movie 3. Angélique et le Roy
I'll confess, out of all movies this is my favorite, the wild palace intrigue is up my alley. And I always feel bad that like other movies the plot was squeezed. But oh well.
When we talk about squeezing the plot the death of Philippe on he battlefield and Angelique's widowhood come in scenes one after another. Honestly, I feel like in those years ppl didn't beat around the bush about the story progress. And just after that she receives an invitation from the king. And we all know, invitation is just a polite form of "order". It was delievered by our old friend Desgrez, he also insisted that if Angelique wanted a better future for her children she might consider the diplomatic mission.
Knowing she had no other choice she followed.
Funnily, the authors play with real historical figure and at this time the famous case from those time surfaced in the plot of this movie. In the bedroom of the king we see a beautiful woman, she is Marquise of Montespan. The oen who had relationship with the king, but later was involved in a case of poisons and witchcraft and honestly, the fully exploited it for the story.
After meeting the king Angelique was offered to contact ambassodor of Persia, diplomatic talks about agreement between two countries was a stale mode, so the king offered her to achieve things where men failed, but also offered a good deal, the castle that belonged to her husband and where she moved right away. In the castle she actually finds someone who knew Joeffrey and was occupying castle at this time, but she also found what gave her a little hope - Joeffrey's shirt he wore on the day of execution. But the man dispelled her hope.
The Persia ambassador plot is actually can be called the routine where a man is masmerized by the beauty of Angelique. This unexplained passionate love at first sight is everywhere in the movies. But since he comes from a different background they obviously clash in their views. She is after all a noble woman of France, not someone who could be gifted at will or someone who will obey willingly. She was actually saved from her lock up and luckily left.
Since this was the case, ambassador decided to leave, but was not ready to see Angelique again, so in my impression it was something like - come to Versailles, you can see me there, since you're here please act a bit like us and don't abduct people. So it really felt like he agreed because of her. What a "beauty trap". Yet he wanted to take her a reward, but to save the day and also to take this chance, Angelique was announced to be the king's favorite. The king eyed her from the first time he saw her, but she was always out of his reach. For her reward she has taken some liquid that could be seen only in Persia (that presumably acted like explosives actually). Here Angelique had a little fling with the guy who saved her previously. Honestly, in modern times you'd call it "little wolf dog", since he's a bit far from milk dog, but he's young and handsome. But he got into troubles because he saved her and he was on the run. As a person who saved her she couldn't turn her back and she covered for him, but was summoned because of this. Here, I can actually understand the king's anger, as a man he wanted her for a long time, but in this others were mor successful than him and it felt like she easily gave other men what she never gave him, he also has his own political game, which may not be liked by others and there is a good part in the movie where he explains that he is a king of this country first, so he can't fully be like a normal person and act as he wants, there is too many compromises to make when ruling. Which is quite true. Angelique asks him not to press on her, since to be a lover to a king has its' own consequences, although she plays it like she's tempted, but in a later scene we find out that she came to the king only for Joeffrey and for a showdown.
Before visiting the king at night Desgrez comes with a body of the dog, which was poisoned by the food that originally was prepared for Angelique. As her friend Desgrez tested it for her and also insisted on her leaving Versailles, but yet she refused. Then cmes the confrontation scene where the speach of the king about his ruling comes. Basically to me they're truly people of two different beliefs, they might belong to one world and Angelique is part of teh nobility, but she doesn't chase the king like others for what he can offer, she cares about human lives and kindness, to her the treacherous accusations of her husband were dishonest, yet to him kingdom is everything. Although if we talk about interests and feelings I have a hunch that it wasn't entirely king fearing the influence of her husband, but also because it was convenient... yet indeed, if Joeffrey did not support the king in his deeds and was only a rich man within the country, then I can understand the whole layout. He also uncovered the truth, he saved life of Joeffrey, but it was said that when he jumped into the river to escape the current was too strong and his body was found later (the body thing was a lie though). This truth was something that made Angelique leave, she wished to find teh truth, it seemed that her guess that her husband is alive after seeing his shirt happened to be truth. She asks to leave.
Back in Paris in her mansion when she was about to sleep her maid took out a poisoned night shirt. If it wasn't for a dropped leaf with obvious signs she wouldn't notice. This is the scene that amazed me when I first watched, first of all the whole dress was poisoned (thus I say they exploited affair of poisons and Montespan), next is the sfx of chemical burns that appeared when Angelique used same dress to slap the maid, her hands were covered in blisters and rotting flesh. They found it was someone who was close to Montespan who ordered it. It's interesting how they never say what happens to dead ppl, but next day they're on he river, swimming))) But before Angelique undressed, honestly, just look at her impeccable dress and her hair when it is done looks like art
Ah~ so pretty.
It was also a place where she noticed a birthmark on Montespan's hip. It's funny how they confronted each other. But in the end the way Angelique walked out in her undergarments and shocked the king was really bold. It's also here she finds out the connection between the one who ordered her poisonous night gown and Montespan, she asked her friend to follow them. It was because of this following they found a strange thing that this woman entered a remote place and later the famous child trafficker was also noticed with a newborn. Angelique couldn't put two and two together. And here comes the second exploitation of Montespan. Witchcraft. They used a black messa with sacrifices to highlight it, because of that birthmark Angelique found it was Montespan on the altar who was masked. Her biggest wish was to get a longlasting friendship with the king and bear king's children. Angelique interrupts the process, she can't see an innocent child be sacrificed and escapes, but her friend unfortunately was shot.
She wantd to uncover this truth, but is stopped by Desgrez, he wants to uncover a case of poisons and knew everything about dark dealings of Montespan. And also to not let Angelique, who now completely believes that Joeffrey is dead, become future king's lover. He insists that her husband is alive and it's the only way to keep her is to tell her the truth what Desgrez discovered when investigating. It was also at night when Angelique was about to be assasinated when Joeffrey (coneniently) came to visit her at night. The confrontation woke her up and she finally saw him, but no matter how she pleaded he still went away. She gets his letter that asks her to live and forget him, now he's confronting the king and has his own mission, returning is impossible, but Angelique refuses to let go and decided to chase. They leave Paris.
Movie 4. Indomptable Angélique + Movie 5. Angélique et le Sultan
Tbh, by the 4th movie and especially 5th movie I got tired (I guess unlike the first time I watched), I had questions, some parts I outrightly didn't like and in general it had played the same repetitive things. Although the most can be said about water scenes and fights. Extras/stuntmen did their work really well.
My question was - how in the world she agreed to travel on a ship with unknown men, she was basically a weak woman among tenths of men and it was like a big trouble. She actually was almost violated, but was lucky. Their ship was actually sunk by Joeffrey who is now a notorious person. He had no idea she was on the ship and Angelique nearly escaped but was unlucky to be picked up by pirates. Now she was a captive who was going to be sold. It also has a pretty unnecessary scenes like tw r*** and also the leader of pirates threw her to prisoners where again she was almost violated, she was rescued by one of the crew, even though his rescue had an aim for her to be alive and kicking, because the were going to trade her. It's funny when they showed Joeffrey he went to a secert cave where you could see several women, but they acted like a small harem. Who knows if there was something, or they were just freed women were sold. Anyway the whole movie is mostly travel, then landing and finally the auction time. She was sold for a huge amount of money, no one saved her and she was basically left to fate, little did she know that the one who bought her was actually Joeffrey, they finally met again.
Maybe it's all romantic, but I question her responsibility, she was too reckless to leave, she left her children, agreed to swin with unknown people, this is a true meaning when someone asks for troubles. If Joeffrey wasn't there, what would she do.
It's also funny how even though they met he couldn't believe his wife was lover to the king and it was strange how he didn't believe her. Wasn't it enough that she was safe, she went through so much. If it wasn't the redemption in the last movie I'd question him and I do. After all she believed that he was dead and he never gave a sign, she had more relationships than he might think, but king wasn't among them. To him his new life was quite important, since he bore it like a mission. It's funny how emotionally he stayed on the ship, but when he went ashore the ships was on fire. Again the way they show a bunch of ppl who were on the ship but as if no one noticed and Joeffrey didn't feel it was suspicious, but actually agrred to Angelique who told him go and save the ship, never left ppl to protect her..convenience of the plot. Basically here was the end of movie 4, Angelique was kidnapped to become part of sultan's harem. I remember I once read a historical romance where a woman also had similar wild history of romances, but she actually was part of the harem for some time too, but Angelique of course was protesting, she believed it's better to die than to become one of those women. So 5th movie is again travel, landing in the desert and time before she went to harem, but not the official one, she lived with those who were discarded, used goods. She didn't want to reveal herself, but due to her wish to save a man she came across sultan for the first time. Seeing new beauty sultan was infatuated, but Angelieque thought it was better to die, she was whipped, but she refused to give in. In the meantime she was healing the man she saved wanted to escape and he also helped her along the way. Women in the harem also helped them, since they didn't want a strong rival to stay. Three people traveled desert for a long time, but at the last moment they were stopped. Joeffrey smartly arranged for a dumb person to appear and reveal gold, a load of gold, sultan was led to meet him and they both made an agreement, Joeffrey explains his biggest secret, how he produces gold, but in return he wants his wife back. Thus, unfortunately they man who escaped with Angelique was shot, but she was saved. She woke up on the ship in Joeffrey's embrace and they finally could go home. Thus the happy ending.
Tbh I find the 4th and 5th movies a bit unnecessary. Mostly the 5th. 4th is okay since she found him, but there was too much violence. there was also this scene with slaves where Mercier flashed her chest for the only time in the whole series (at other time I know she used mean to cover herself, when she did some naked backview scenes), but honestly even if that scene where someone could easily take advantage, but she was truly professional. The whole 5th movie had nothing new, since we only meet new character like sultan, we don't care about him at all. There's not enough confrontation in the harem too, very few scenes. The whole - I better die than give in - was already played enough. Angelique was too reckless to even start this adventure without enough preparation. Tbh if Joeffrey just decided to appear in the 3rd movie and they talked and she was taken away and disappeared with him, I'm pretty sure she would agree and it'd be a happy ending without violence and such disturbing scenes. Angelique already suffered such shame once, I think that time was enough. So many time I wished that she at least would carry a dagger around.
Of course with how things were it wasn't really possible to shoot the way it'd be shot like right now. The technical means changed. But if to compare, it must be that now because of technical means we can do the close ups, multi-shots, angles etc. which could expand the emotional line, because otherwise many things that are going on are too much on the surface and you need your own brain supplement to fill the gap. It's not that emotional scenes are not enough, there's still enough dialogue and nicely put scenes that convey love and care, after all Angelique was ready to leave anything for him and he as well gave a lot for her. It was a really successful series of movies back then. And that adventurous spirit of Angelique stayed in hearts of many.
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