''Children of the Century'' (french: Les Enfants du Siècle) is a 1999 French film based on the true tale of the tumultuous love affair between two French literary icons of the 19th century, novelist George Sand (

Juliette Binoche Juliette Binoche (; born 9 March 1964) is a French actress and dancer. She has appeared in more than sixty feature films and has been the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Silver Bear, ...

) and poet

Alfred de Musset Alfred Louis Charles de Musset-Pathay (; 11 December 1810 – 2 May 1857) was a French dramatist, poet, and novelist.His names are often reversed "Louis Charles Alfred de Musset": see "(Louis Charles) Alfred de Musset" (bio), Biography.com, 2007 ...

( Benoît Magimel).

Plot summary

The story begins as George Sand quits her marital home and arrives in Paris with her two children. Meanwhile, the young poet and dandy

is busy making a name for himself both as a womaniser and a talented poet and critic. Sand and Musset first meet at a literary dinner and quickly recognise in each other a like-minded love of literature. At first their relationship remains platonic, but soon the pair embark on a tumultuous affair that will lead them to Venice and the creation of their finest works of literature.

Background and production

The film was shot on location in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, Nohant and

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

from August to December 1998. In an interview with ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'' entitled "Playing with Sand", Diane Kurys revealed that she was shooting in the actual rooms Sand and Musset had occupied in the

Hotel Danieli The Hotel Danieli is a palatial five-star hotel in Venice, Italy. The central wing of the hotel was built as the Palazzo Dandolo at the end of the 14th century, by one of the Dandolo families. CNN cites it as one of the top five "lavish hotels" in ...

, while

revealed that Sand's estate had loaned the production some of her possessions including a

sapphire Sapphire is a precious gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum, consisting of aluminium oxide () with trace amounts of elements such as iron, titanium, chromium, vanadium, or magnesium. The name sapphire is derived via the Latin "sapphir ...

ring and jewel-encrusted dagger. When asked about her inspiration for the film, Kurys mentioned that Musset's account of the affair in his book ''La Confession d'un Enfant du Siècle'' was her starting point. Binoche said that her attraction to the part was due to "Sand's combination of strengths and weaknesses".

Cast

: George Sand * Benoît Magimel :

* Robin Renucci :

François Buloz François Buloz (20 September 1803 – 12 January 1877) was a French ''littérateur'', magazine editor, and theater administrator. He was born in Vulbens, Haute-Savoie, near Geneva, and died in Paris. Originally employed as a chemist, ...

Stefano Dionisi Stefano Dionisi (born 1 October 1966, in Rome) is an Italian actor. He has performed in more than sixty films since 1986. He is best known for portraying the 18th-century Italian castrato opera singer Farinelli Farinelli (; 24 January 1705 � ...

: Pietro Pagello *

Karin Viard Karin Viard (; born 24 January 1966) is a multi-award-winning French actress. She made her film debut in ''Tatie Danielle'' in 1990. She has appeared in films such as ''Delicatessen'', ''L'Emploi du temps'', ''Adultère, mode d'emploi'' and ''La ...

Marie Dorval Marie Dorval (6 January 1798, Lorient, Morbihan – 20 May 1849) was a French actress in the Romantic style. Early life and first marriage Marie Thomase Amélie Delauney was born on 6 January 1798 to Marie Bourdais, who was sixteen yea ...

Denis Podalydès Denis Podalydès (born 22 April 1963) is a French actor and scriptwriter of Greek descent. Podalydès has appeared in more than 140 films and television shows since 1989. He starred in '' The Officers' Ward'', which was entered into the 2001 Can ...

Charles-Augustin Sainte-Beuve Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve (; 23 December 1804 – 13 October 1869) was a French literary critic. Early life He was born in Boulogne, educated there, and studied medicine at the Collège Charlemagne in Paris (1824–27). In 1828, he ...

Isabelle Carré Isabelle Carré (born 28 May 1971) is a French actress. She has appeared in more than 70 films since 1989. She won a César Award for Best Actress for her role in '' Se souvenir des belles choses'' (2001), and has been nominated a further six ti ...

: Aimée d'Alton *

Patrick Chesnais Patrick Chesnais (born 18 March 1947) is a French actor, film director and screenwriter. Life and career Patrick Chesnais was born in La Garenne-Colombes, Hauts-de-Seine. He was educated at the '' Lycée Pierre Corneille'' in Rouen. In 1989 ...

Gustave Planche Jean Baptiste Gustave Planche (16 February 1808 – 18 September 1857) was a French art and literary critic. Life and career Already in his time as a medical student, Planche frequented artistic circles. This did nothing to promote the success of ...

Olivier Foubert Olivier is the French form of the given name Oliver. It may refer to: * Olivier (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Olivier (surname), a list of people * Château Olivier, a Bordeaux winery *Olivier, Louisiana, a rural popul ...

Paul de Musset Paul Edme de Musset (7 November 1804 – 17 May 1880) was a French writer. He was born in Paris, the elder brother of Alfred de Musset. Paul de Musset's career centred largely on the life and achievements of his more famous brother. In 18 ...

Marie-France Mignal Marie-France Mignal (born 3 April 1940), is a French actress. She is the co-director of the Théâtre Saint-Georges, with France Delahalle. She is known for her work in television, cinema (''Weekend at Dunkirk'', '' The Two Orphans''), and in ...

: Madame de Musset * Ludivine Sagnier : Hermine de Musset *

Robert Plagnol Robert Plagnol is a French actor, who starred as Boris Vildé in the French TV series ''Résistance''. Plagnol has appeared in numerous films, TV shows and plays. Filmography * 2013 : Joséphine, ange gardien (TV Series / 1 Episode) : Alex * ...

Jules Sandeau Léonard Sylvain Julien (Jules) Sandeau (; 19 February 1811 – 24 April 1883) was a French novelist. Early life Sandeau was born at Aubusson (Creuse), and was sent to Paris to study law, but spent much of his time in unruly behaviour with oth ...

Michel Robin Michel Robin (13 November 1930 – 18 November 2020) was a French film, stage, and television actor. A Sociétaires of the Comédie-Française, sociétaire of the Comédie-Française since 1996, he also appeared in 120 films from 1966 to 201 ...

: Larive *

Mathias Mégard Mathias, a given name and a surname which is a variant of Matthew (name), may refer to: Places * Mathias, West Virginia * Mathias Township, Michigan People with the given name or surname ''Mathias'' In music * Mathias Eick, Norwegian Jazz Musici ...

Eugène Delacroix Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix ( , ; 26 April 1798 – 13 August 1863) was a French Romantic artist regarded from the outset of his career as the leader of the French Romantic school.Noon, Patrick, et al., ''Crossing the Channel: Britis ...

* Arnaud Giovaninetti : Alfred Tattet *

Pascal Ternisien Pascal, Pascal's or PASCAL may refer to: People and fictional characters * Pascal (given name), including a list of people with the name * Pascal (surname), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name ** Blaise Pascal, Frenc ...

: Boucoiran *

Victoire Thivisol Victoire Thivisol (born 6 July 1991) is a French film actress. She first gained acclaim for her role as a child coping with her mother's death in the 1996 film ''Ponette'', becoming the youngest actress to win the Volpi Cup Best Actress Award ...

: Solange * Julien Léal : Maurice *

Jean-Claude de Goros Jean-Claude is a French masculine given name. Notable people with the name include: * Jean-Claude Ades, an Italian electronic music producer * Jean-Claude Alibert (died 2020), a French racing driver * Jean-Claude Amiot (born 1939), a French compos ...

: Capo de Feuillide

Premiere

''Les Enfants du Siècle'' made its world premiere out of competition at the 1999

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...

before being released in French theatres on September 22, 1999. The film made its North American debut at the 1999

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a permane ...

. The film made its UK debut as part of the ''Martell French Film Tour'' in September and October 2000, followed by a conventional cinematic run starting on April 6, 2001.

Film festivals

* Cannes Film Festival 1999 (out of competition - special gala screening) * Toronto International Film Festival 1999 * Algerian Summer Film Festival 2000 * Budapest French Film Festival 2000 * Moscow French Film Festival 2000 * Martell French Film Tour 2000 (UK) * Dublin French Film Festival 2001 * Warsaw French Film Festival 2001

Soundtrack

The soundtrack album to accompany the film was released by

Decca Classics Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American Decca's president. In ...

. The original music featured in the film consisting of a guitar and piano score was composed by Luis Bacalov. The film also features music by Ernst Eichner,

Robert Schumann Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career a ...

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

among others. The score was recorded in January 1999 by the

Rome Symphony Orchestra Rome Symphony Orchestra (RSO) is a professional U.S. orchestra located in Rome, Georgia. The organization was founded in 1921, disbanded around 1930, and reestablished in 1948.The RSO is currently the oldest symphony in the South South is one o ...

and featuring Fábio Zanon on guitar and Leonid Kuzmin on piano. The album was supervised by Murray Head.

Track listing

All tracks composed by Luis Bacalov unless otherwise indicated: * Les Enfants du Siècle (Guitar) (02:23) * Les Confessions (02:57) * Café Tortoni (02:30) * La flûte désenchantée (01:54) * Concerto in C major for harp and orchestra : Allegro (04:54) ( Ernst Eichner 1740-1777) * Arabeske in C, Op. 18 : IV Zum Schluss (01:24) (Robert Schumann) * Le baiser (02:29) * Le cœur qui bat (02:16) * Papillons (01:16) * La première fois (05:50) * Beatrice di Tenda, opera seria in due atti (04:47) (

Vincenzo Bellini Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini (; 3 November 1801 – 23 September 1835) was a Sicilian opera composer, who was known for his long-flowing melodic lines for which he was named "the Swan of Catania". Many years later, in 1898, Giu ...

) * Désespoir (02:05) * La guérison (02:16) * Le Bal (02:51) * Der Müller und der Bach (05:53) (

) * Romanze (Piuttosto lento) (02:22) (Robert Schumann) * Chez Delacroix (01:34) * Le cheval mort (02:31) * L'amour en fuite (02:30) * Les Enfants du Siècle (Piano) (02:11)

Alternate versions

The film was released in 2 versions with different running times. The long version as released in France on September 22, 1999 has a running time of 135 mins. It begins as Sand abandons her husband and arrives in revolution torn Paris and Musset's father dies of

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...

. A shorter version was released in Germany and the UK and other territories which runs at 105mins. It begins at the literary event at which Sand and Musset met and ends with their final meeting. The longer version goes on to show Sand's attempts to see the dying Musset, and ends with her reading her letters to him by his tomb. ''Les Enfants du Siècle'' was released under the English-language title ''Children of the Century'' in the US by Koch Lorber Films, but retained its French-Language title while on release in the UK, Canada and Australia. The film was distributed in the UK by

Film Four Film4 is a British free-to-air television network owned by Channel Four Television Corporation launched on 1 November 1998, devoted to broadcasting films. While its standard-definition channel is available on Freeview and Freesat platforms, it ...

, in Canada by Alliance Atlantis and in Australia by AE Classics.

Books

Two books were published in conjunction with the film. ''Les Enfants du Siecle'' () is a novelization of the screenplay by

François-Olivier Rousseau François-Olivier Rousseau (born 20 September 1947, Boulogne-Billancourt) is a French journalist and writer. Biography A young literary critic at ''Le Matin de Paris'' at the end of the 1970s, he became a novelist, met with success immediately ...

. ''Sand & Musset'' () is a large format coffee-table book exploring the history of Sand and Musset and the production of the film, co-written by Jean-Pierre Guéno, Roselyne de Ayala, and Diane Kurys, with lavish illustrations by Maxime Rebiere.

References

External links

* *
Film Four - UK Distributor

BBC Films Review (UK)

Film Review (UK)

British Film Institute listing
{{George Sand 1999 films 1999 romantic drama films Romance films based on actual events Films directed by Diane Kurys Films produced by Alain Sarde Cultural depictions of George Sand French romantic drama films Biographical films about writers 1990s French films