Kelvin Harrison Jr. shines, but “Chevalier” doesn’t hit all the right notes — Review
It’s curious, isn’t it, how Hollywood films set in cities and countries outside of North America almost create an alternative version of those places, where historical inaccuracies and cultural misnomers abound, but can be ignored owing to a “movie magic” that distracts us? That is without commenting on the stale critique of “why are they all speaking English?”, a common pet peeve that will surely rile up at least few people watching Stephen Williams’ new biography of Joseph Bolonge, Chevalier.
Largely set in the years leading up to the French Revolution, the film follows the son of a slaver (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) who, after being ripped away from his mother in the French territory of Guadeloupe, is put through a well-to-do academy and, eventually, finds favour with Marie Antoinette (Lucy Boynton).
Given the title of “Chevalier de Saint-Georges”, Joseph’s exploits in the field of music — the very first (and not so subtle) scene sees him take on Mozart in a violin duel— earn him popularity amongst the Parisian upper-class. However, the film pokes at the idea that his station in life is uneasy, and ready to be ripped away at any moment by the racist forces of the country’s aristocratic elite.
As suggested by the overtly romantic tone of the piece, which announces itself long before any actual romance develops, the affections of a beautiful woman (Samara Weaving’s opera singer Marie-Josephine) soon bring joy, but also complications, to Joseph’s decadent existence, as does the arrival of his freed mother, and the rising tide of social unrest outside the gates of Versailles.
As you would expect from a well-budgeted period piece, Chevalier is handsomely garbed with beautiful costumes and lavish production design, although the art direction is so pristine that what we’re presented with rarely feels like a convincing evocation of the time period and setting.
Therein lies one of the film’s drawbacks — while the aforementioned opening scene hints at a more playful, anachronistic take on the accepted history, which actually sounds like a more interesting direction for the material, much of Williams’ biopic floats uncertainly between serious depiction of Bolonge’s troubled association with the French monarchy, and a more modernist approach. In the end, Williams’ film doesn’t really choose either.
Fortunately, the drama is mostly held together by a sterling performance from Kelvin Harrison Jr., who has a charisma that leaps off the screen and enlivens Stefani Robinson’s plodding script. If there is a complexity to Joseph— as a man with the loyalties to the court, yet a sense of quiet indignation at his contradictory place in high society — Harrison Jr. captures this tension.
There’s nothing particularly wrong with the rest of the cast, which also includes Minnie Driver as an opera singer (whose romantic advances Joseph rebuffs), but like most of Chevalier, it’s hard to get too excited about them. This is, after all, a decidedly safe biopic which quickly settles into familiar conventions, and seems reticent to fully reckon with the theme of discrimination that lies at the core of Joseph Bolonge’s story.
One area where Chevalier doesn’t disappoint, though, is the music, which is used to arresting effect on more than a few occasions, especially the climactic scene. Kris Bowers’ score also meshes well with the samples of Bolonge’s music we are treated to; it’s just a shame that more often than not, the subject’s talents play second fiddle to what is a fairly tepid romantic drama.
Directed by: Stephen Williams
Starring: Kelvin Harrison Jr., Samara Weaving, Lucy Boynton
Runtime: 107 Minutes
Chevalier (12A) is playing in UK cinemas now