A French icon falls: Gérard Depardieu’s guilt will make his films hard to watch

It seems strangely due that 76-year-old French movie prima Gérard Depardieu was found blameworthy of intersexual assault and fixed an 18-month suspended situation condemnation connected the eve of the 78th variation of the Cannes movie festival. Both Cannes and Depardieu, calved successful the 40s, beryllium to an aged world, but it seems lone 1 of them has managed to accommodate to the times we unrecorded in, particularly since the #MeToo movement.

For anyone who followed the proceedings closely, it was ne'er successful uncertainty that justness would prevail and that a French monument was astir to fall. Once the accusers, 2 pistillate technicians who worked arsenic set-dresser and adjunct manager connected the movie Les Volets Verts successful 2021, had pressed charges and the facts been exposed successful court, determination was small uncertainty arsenic to the dignity of the victims and the veracity of the intersexual assaults. But what was peculiarly striking was however Depardieu behaved passim the trial. His cognition was an aggravating origin for the nationalist but besides the court. Unrepentant, uncomprehending, lamenting that helium didn’t recognize this caller world, Depardieu pretended to beryllium physically frailer than helium was, and lacked gravitas.

For this French citizen, determination was 1 peculiarly revealing infinitesimal successful the trial, erstwhile 76-year-old histrion Fanny Ardant (who starred alongside Depardieu successful François Truffaut’s The Woman Next Door) testified successful enactment of her person Depardieu. She made her entranceway successful a agelong achromatic formal and achromatic collar, and delivered a passionate monologue astir the creation of acting. “I cognize we are present to hunt for the truth, but I would similar to broaden the statement and accidental wherefore Gérard Depardieu is specified a large actor. He is simply a genius astatine giving his characters extent and richness, and a complexity with its stock of contradiction, bully and evil, airy and shadow. Any genius carries successful them thing extravagant, rebellious and unsafe (…) If helium is loved each implicit the satellite it is due to the fact that everyone tin recognise themselves successful the characters helium plays. (…) Yes, helium has a large mouth, yes, helium shouts obscenities, yes, helium plays the fool. Without taking risks, 1 is nary much an artist, 1 is conscionable a servant.”

Ardant ended: “I cognize the satellite has changed, I cognize we present find intolerable what we utilized to tolerate and that institutions are present to alteration society, but fearfulness should not go the caller morality.” The court’s president thanked Ardant for “this beauteous representation of Gérard Depardieu” and, implacable, reminded the histrion that “we are not present for morality purposes; we are present to use the law. And to look astatine facts of intersexual assaults.” Indeed. There was ne'er a amended reminder, particularly successful France, that facts prevail and that adjacent genius cannot beryllium a shield immoderate more.

On Tuesday, Depardieu’s lawyer declared they would entreaty against the court’s decision. However, the movie manufacture sentenced him a agelong clip ago. The actor, arguably 1 of the top of the 20th century, hasn’t changeable a movie successful the past 3 years and his uncommon performances connected signifier person been disrupted by protesters. In airy of this judgement his vocation could beryllium finished and his estimation profoundly tarnished. What remains is his work: much than 200 films and TV series. They exist, successful people’s memories and successful celluloid, and they cannot beryllium erased.

This cinephile volition not banish masterpieces specified arsenic Bernardo Bertolucci’s 1900, Truffaut’s The Last Metro and The Woman Next Door, Andrzej Wajda’s Danton, Maurice Pialat’s Under the Sun of Satan, and Jean-Paul Rappeneau’s Cyrano from her idiosyncratic cinematic pantheon. A movie is simply a sum of galore talents, successful beforehand of and down the camera and the acts of 1 idiosyncratic should not taint the enactment of different hundred. However, to accidental that the autumn of Depardieu volition person nary interaction connected our acquisition arsenic viewers is of people deluded. Cinephiles are besides citizens, they don’t unrecorded successful a vacuum-packed world. Watching those films again whitethorn beryllium a bittersweet experience, conscionable similar watching postwar French films with actors who chose to collaborate with the force during the 2nd satellite war. Unsavoury and sad.