14/06/23

Cineworld, Edinburgh

Chevalier is the latest Hollywood film to cast light on an important Black historical figure, previously relegated to a footnote. It’s too little, too late of course, but at least it is a start…

Kelvin Harrison Jr plays the titular Chevalier, Joseph Bologne, a young Black prodigy. The illegitimate son of Georges de Bologne (Jim High), a wealthy plantation owner, and Nanon (Ronke Adekoluejo), an enslaved Senegalese woman, Joseph’s musical proficiency spurs his father to uproot him from Guadeloupe, dumping him in a posh Parisian conservatory, where his violin skills – and knowledge of courtly etiquette – can be honed. Fortunately for Joseph, he is as good with a foil as he is with a bow, and his ability to lunge and parry proves useful, both literally and metaphorically, as he tries to make his way in French society.

The mid-1700s were turbulent times in France, but – for much of this film’s duration – Joseph is closeted from the outside world. Instead, he is protected by his talents, roped in to tutor Marie Antoinette (Lucy Boynton), and fêted by the opera-loving toffs. It’s not all plain sailing, of course: there are repeated slights as well as some open hostility, but – for a while – things seem to be going his way. But when he throws his hat in the ring as a contender to lead the prestigious Paris Opéra, it soon becomes apparent that he has overstepped the mark, and that the establishment will not countenance what they perceive as his presumption. Time to take him down a peg or two, they decide, and a trio of divas, led by La Guimard (Minnie Driver), announce that they will never deign to take orders from a “mulatto”. Joseph appeals to his ally, Marie Antoinette, but she refuses to act. Perhaps he shouldn’t be surprised to learn that a monarch believes in birthright…

But perhaps the Queen shouldn’t be surprised to learn that a victim will want revenge, and that her rejection is the final straw. Nanon, newly freed and reunited with her son in France, has already made some headway educating him about the ways of the world. Now the scales have truly fallen from his eyes, and there is only one thing for it: the Chevalier must join the revolution.

Directed by Stephen Williams, this is a handsomely mounted film, Stefani Robinson’s script sticking largely to the facts, although there is a little artistic license taken with the central romance, with much made of the scant historical information available. Here, Joseph embarks on a doomed affair with Marie-Josephine (Samara Weaving), wife of the vengeful Marquise de Montalembert (Marton Csokas). I think this is a good idea as, although the characters are all well-drawn, and Harrison Jr is particularly compelling, there’s not an awful lot of plot here. This really is Chevalier‘s main problem: the middle third sags. Another strand would help enormously: I’d love to have learned more about Nanon, for example, and her journey from slave to free woman.

Nonetheless, this is a rewarding and informative film, which will hopefully help to restore Bologne’s name to the musical canon.

3.7 stars

Susan Singfield