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UCFC Movie Reviews Cyrano de Bergerac Year: 1950 Director: Michael Gordon Fencing Master: Fred Cavens Starring: José Ferrer, Mala Powers, William Prince, Morris Carnovsky, Ralph Clanton Review by V. Bjerreskov (02 07 23) Many people consider this film to be the epitome of all Cyrano films. I will not say that. I have not seen all the Cyrano films in existence, and I enjoyed Gérard Depardieu's version more, but I will say that this is a very good film interpretation of the play. Having such wonderful source material to draw on, it is very difficult to turn out a bad version of Cyrano (although The Truth About Cats and Dogs is the exception to that rule). This film is very true to the original text, including many scenes and lines that serve only to enhance character and backstory. I particularly liked the scene after Cyrano breaks up the play, when he is offered food and drink by a serving girl. The translation seems to keep much of the humour and subtleties of the play (moreso than the one I have at home, which has no subtlety at all!). Cinematically, the scenes are well shot, with the possible exceptions of Cyrano's death and some of the battle scenes. Ferrer might have one an Oscar for his performance here, but by the end of the film, I was wondering if he had more than one way of delivering a line. Not to say that he didn't do an excellent job capturing Cyrano's aggression and devil-may-care attitude. His physical acting was superb; his hand-gestures were wonderfully in character, and the way he looked down his whole sweeping nose at people was wonderful. However, as Cyrano stumbles about dying, Ferrer delivers his lines in exactly the same way, with exactly the same force, as he did at the beginning of the film. Not only is Cyrano fifteen years older by this point, but he's also on his deathbed, and I was a little shaken out of the web of the film. As for the others, Powers left a lot to be desired as Roxanne. She seemed to drift through the film in a kind of drugged haze, never experiencing any emotion completely. Prince was an excellent Christian, wide-eyed and tounge-tied. As for Clanton as de Guiche, he never seemed to be the least bit sinister or calculating, or even in love with Roxanne, which made that whole subplot fall flat. Fencing in older films is by and large better than fencing in more recent films, and Cyrano is no exception. Yes, there is a large amount of choreography in the brawl scenes, but one-on-one duels are very good, with little slash-and-stab and a great deal of actual footwork and swordplay. This was one of the first Cyranos to make it onto the silver screen, and remains enjoyable today. I recommend it with a bowl of buttered popcorn, and with a movie like Harvey or Arsenic and Old Lace as a chaser. Back to Movie Reviews Home  |  About Us   |  About Fencing   |  Links  |  Photo Gallery Image Bank  |  Reviews   |  Fencing Fun  |  Contact Us