''That Night in Varennes'' (; ) is a 1982 French-Italian drama film directed by

Ettore Scola Ettore Scola (; 10 May 1931 – 19 January 2016) was an Italian screenwriter and film director. He received a Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film, Golden Globe for Best Foreign Film in 1978 for his film ''A Special Day'' and over ...

. It is based on a novel by Catherine Rihoit. It tells the story of a fictional meeting among Restif de la Bretonne,

Giacomo Casanova Giacomo Girolamo Casanova (; ; 2 April 1725 – 4 June 1798) was an Italian adventurer who was born in the Republic of Venice and travelled extensively throughout Europe. He is chiefly remembered for his autobiography, written in French and pu ...

Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In ...

and Sophie de la Borde (a lady in waiting to the queen). They are all traveling together in a coach that is a few hours behind the one that is carrying

King Louis XVI Louis XVI (Louis-Auguste; ; 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) was the last king of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. The son of Louis, Dauphin of France (son and heir-apparent of King Louis XV), and Mari ...

and

Marie Antoinette Marie Antoinette (; ; Maria Antonia Josefa Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last List of French royal consorts, queen of France before the French Revolution and the establishment of the French First Republic. She was the ...

in their

flight to Varennes The Flight to Varennes (French: fuite de Varennes) during the night of 20–21 June 1791 was a significant event in the French Revolution in which the French royal family—comprising Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, the Dauphin Louis Charles, ...

during the French Revolution. The film was entered into the

1982 Cannes Film Festival The 35th Cannes Film Festival took place from 14 to 26 May 1982. Italian opera and theatre director Giorgio Strehler served as jury president for the main competition. The Palme d'Or, the festival's top prize, was jointly awarded to '' Missing' ...

. The film was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film by the U.S.

National Board of Review of Motion Pictures The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures is a non-profit organization of New York City area film enthusiasts. Its awards, which are announced in early December, are considered the first major harbinger of the awards season, film award ...

Selected cast

Jean-Louis Barrault Jean-Louis Bernard Barrault (; 8 September 1910 – 22 January 1994) was a French actor, director and mime artist who worked on both screen and stage. Biography Barrault was born in Le Vésinet in France in 1910. His father was 'a Burgundi ...

as Nicolas Edmé Restif de la Bretonne *

Marcello Mastroianni Marcello Vincenzo Domenico Mastroianni (26 September 1924Come da lui stesso dichiarato a 1'10" dquesta intervista/ref> – 19 December 1996) was an Italian actor. He is generally regarded as one of Italy's most iconic male performers of the 20t ...

as Casanova, Chevalier de Seingalt * Hanna Schygulla as Countess Sophie de la Borde *

Harvey Keitel Harvey Keitel ( ; born May 13, 1939) is an American actor and film producer, known for his portrayal of morally ambiguous and "tough guy" characters. He rose to prominence during the New Hollywood movement, and has held a long-running associatio ...

as Thomas Paine *

Jean-Claude Brialy Jean-Claude Brialy (30 March 1933 – 30 May 2007) was a French actor and film director. Early life Brialy was born in Aumale (now Sour El-Ghozlane), French Algeria, where his father was stationed with the French Army. Brialy moved to mainland ...

as Monsieur Jacob * Andréa Ferréol as Madame Adélaïde Gagnon * Michel Vitold as De Florange *

Laura Betti Laura Betti ( Trombetti; May 1 1934 – 31 July 2004) was an Italian actress known particularly for her work with directors Federico Fellini, Pier Paolo Pasolini, and Bernardo Bertolucci. She had a long friendship with Pasolini and made a docume ...

as Virginia Capacelli * Pierre Malet as Emile Delage, student revolutionary * Enzo Jannacci as the Italian clown * Daniel Gélin as De Wendel * Didi Perego as Madame Sauce * Caterina Boratto as Madame Faustine * Dora Doll as Nanette Precy * Hugues Quester as Jean-Louis Romeuf *

Jean-Louis Trintignant Jean-Louis Xavier Trintignant (; 11 December 1930 – 17 June 2022) was a French actor. He made his theatrical debut in 1951, and went on to be regarded as one of the best French dramatic actors of the post-World War II, war era. He starred in m ...

as Monsieur Sauce *

Michel Piccoli Jacques Daniel Michel Piccoli (27 December 1925 – 12 May 2020) was a French actor, producer and film director with a career spanning 70 years. He was lauded as one of the greatest French character actors of his generation who played a wide vari ...

References

External links

* * 1982 films 1980s historical drama films Films based on French novels French historical drama films Italian historical drama films 1980s French-language films French Revolution films Films directed by Ettore Scola Films scored by Armando Trovajoli Films set in the 1790s Cultural depictions of Giacomo Casanova Cultural depictions of Thomas Paine Cultural depictions of Louis XVI Cultural depictions of Marie Antoinette 1982 drama films Films with screenplays by Ettore Scola 1980s Italian films 1980s French films {{historic-film-stub