Blanche

Set in medieval France, an elderly noble baron (Michel Simon, L’Atalante) and his much younger bride, the beautiful Blanche (Ligia Branice, Goto, Isle of Love) welcome a visiting King (George Wilson, Les destinées) and his handsome page, Bartolomeo (Jacques Perrin, Cinema Paradiso) to their castle, and sets in motion accusations of disloyalty and marital infidelity, turning what should be a fairytale into a nightmare. Walerian Borowczyk (The Beast), whose stylized vision of a bygone world, is key to the overall look and feel of Blanche, which despite its period surroundings, embraces very modern sensibilities. Blanche, written and directed by Walerian Borowczyk (based on the poem Mazepa by Juliusz Slowacki), features performances by Jacques Perrin (Cinema Paradiso), Denise Péronne (Forbidden Games) and Lawrence Trimble (Meetings in the Forest).