Benjamin - From the diary of a male virgin
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | Benjamin - From the diary of a male virgin |
| Original title | Benjamin ou Les Mémoires d'un puceau |
| Country of production | France |
| original language | French |
| Publishing year | 1968 |
| length | 104 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 18 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Michel Deville |
| script | Michel Deville, Nina Companéez |
| production | Likes Bodard |
| music | Jean Wiener |
| camera | Ghislain Cloquet |
| cut | Nina Companéez |
| occupation | |
| |
Benjamin - From the diary of a male virgin (Original title: Benjamin ou Les Mémoires d'un puceau ) is a French comedy film by Michel Deville from 1968 with Pierre Clémenti , Michèle Morgan , Michel Piccoli and Catherine Deneuve in the leading roles.
action
France mid-18th century: the inexperienced 17-year-old Benjamin arrives with his tutor Camille in the castle of his aunt, Countess Gabrielle de Valandry. She invited her orphaned nephew to spend the summer with her. Both the maids and the noble ladies immediately notice the handsome young man and chase after him in order to initiate him into the secrets of love. When the servant Marion Benjamin makes nice eyes, Camille intervenes and ends the tête-à-tête prematurely . Benjamin then goes to the castle park and falls asleep next to a sculpture of Aphrodite . The next morning he is woken up by Madame De Chartres, who is going on a horse excursion. She lets Benjamin get on the horse and gives him a kiss. Together they ride a bit - until Camille catches up with them and brings Benjamin back to the castle. The maids Marion, Victorine and Célestine then prepare Benjamin a bath and set about washing him. Célestine falls into the tub and begins to kiss Benjamin. At that moment the countess comes in and stops the girls from playing. Benjamin lies down on his bed in his bathrobe, whereupon the countess, fascinated by his youth, gently strokes his chest.
The Countess's lover, Count Philippe de Saint-Germain, encourages Benjamin to quickly lose his innocence. During a ride out together, the Count and Benjamin meet Anne de Clécy, a wealthy young lady who lives on the neighboring property. In the evening the Count and Benjamin ride to the house of a married woman. While the count seduces the woman, Benjamin is supposed to watch and make notes in his diary. But before the act of love is completed, the wife's husband comes home. The Count can talk his way out of the situation with charm and wit and then returns to Anne with Benjamin. Both men enter Anne's bedchamber through a window. Anne was about to go to bed. She kisses Benjamin and the count each and then calls for her housekeeper, who immediately appears in the door with a rifle. Back at the Countess's castle, Count Benjamin gets drunk. The next morning, Benjamin lies naked on his bed. The countess comes in and looks at her nephew. Later they take the count on a trip to the local market. There Benjamin meets Célestine, who leads him into the castle park and kisses him. Victorine bursts in between, however, and in turn leads Benjamin into the bedroom of a nearby house. When Benjamin is preparing to take off Victorine's dress, Marion opens the door and orders Victorine to do her duty. Benjamin is willing to share the bed with Marion, but Marion slaps him in the face instead.
At a garden party organized by the countess, the count chases after a young lady. He's always been a womanizer, but it's Anne he wants to marry. Anne feels drawn to the count and would like to marry him, but she would rather lose her virginity to Benjamin. When Anne informs the count of her wish, he attacks her, but lets go of her when she begins to scream. Anne then dances in the park with Benjamin, who has overheard the conversation behind a curtain with a lady in pink. On a bridge, the count tries again to convince Anne of his seductive skills with kisses. Anne, however, remains steadfast, which is why the count takes a branch and angrily hits her with it. While there is a fireworks display in the evening, Célestine Benjamin moves into a barn. When Victorine joins them and both girls undress Benjamin, a fire breaks out. The countess's guests arrive in front of the barn and begin to put out the fire. Meanwhile, Anne and Benjamin retreat to a bedroom and experience it together for the first time. After their act of love, Anne finds Benjamin's diary and asks him to read it to her. In the morning Anne writes an entry in Benjamin's diary. Through a window she sees the Count walking around in the park and shortly afterwards leaves the room.
background
From mid-June to mid-August 1967, the castle and the castle park in Saint-Brice were used as filming locations . In addition to the film music by Jean Wiener , compositions by Joseph Haydn , Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Jean-Philippe Rameau can also be heard in the film. Pierre Clémenti, who played the title role, and Catherine Deneuve had previously appeared together in Luis Buñuel's Belle de Jour (1967).
Benjamin - From the Diary of a Male Virgin premiered in France on January 12, 1968. In Germany, the film comedy was released on September 13, 1968.
Reviews
For the lexicon of international films , Benjamin - From the diary of a male virgin was a "[f] rivolous comedy in rococo decor". However, it lacks "ironic distance and esprit [...] to expose the questionability of an exclusively narcissistically oriented society". The Evangelical Film Observer also came to a similar assessment , according to which "[the] few serious plot elements [...] are being displaced by the fact that the film tries to force its entertainment intentions with a considerable amount of frivolity". He was also "stylistically inconsistent" and could show "only in the middle section usable milieu and time color". At best it is recommended "for adults".
The New Yorker described the film as a "delicate masterpiece of sensual, physical grace and cultivated permissiveness". Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times , however, found the film “not a work of art”, not even from an aesthetic point of view. He is also "little more than amusing now and then". Even Michèle Morgan and Michel Piccoli's “captivating ideas” and “even the unsophisticated beauty of Catherine Deneuve cannot save him”.
Awards
Benjamin - From the Diary of a Male Virgin was awarded the Louis Delluc Prize for Best Film and was also nominated for the Golden Globe in the Best Foreign Language Film category , but was defeated by Franco Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet .
German version
The German dubbed version was created in 1968 by Berliner Synchron under the dubbing direction of Hermann Siemek , who was also responsible for the dialogue book.
| role | actor | Voice actor |
|---|---|---|
| Countess Gabrielle de Valandry | Michèle Morgan | Edith Schneider |
| Count Philippe de Saint-Germain | Michel Piccoli | Wolfgang Kieling |
| Benjamin | Pierre Clémenti | Edwin Noël |
| Anne de Clécy | Catherine Deneuve | Evelyn Gressmann |
| Marion | Francine Bergé | Ilse Pagé |
| Madame De Chartres | Tania Torrens | Margot Leonard |
| married woman | Odile Versois | Brigitte Grothum |
| Basile | Angelo Bardi | Peter Schiff |
| husband | André Cellier | Dietrich Frauboes |
| Camille | Jacques Dufilho | Hugo Schrader |
Web links
- Benjamin - From the diary of a male virgin in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Pictures of the film on cinema.de
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b cf. cinema.encyclopedie.films.bifi.fr
- ↑ cf. cinefiches.com
- ↑ Benjamin - From the diary of a male virgin. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed February 19, 2020 .
- ↑ Evangelischer Filmbeobachter , Evangelischer Presseverband Munich, Review No. 269/1968.
- ↑ "[D] elicate masterpiece of voluptuous physical grace and refined libertinage." The New Yorker quote. after Roger Ebert : Benjamin . In: Chicago Sun-Times , June 24, 1968.
- ↑ “It is not a work of art, or even a work of grace, or even more than fitfully amusing. Even the engaging performances of Michele Morgan and Michel Piccoli […] and the genuine beauty of Catherine Deneuve fail to save it. " Roger Ebert: Benjamin . In: Chicago Sun-Times , June 24, 1968.
- ↑ cf. synchrondatenbank.de
- ↑ Benjamin - From the diary of a male virgin. In: synchronkartei.de. German dubbing file , accessed on March 22, 2020 .