Queen Margot (1994)

Quite the racy love story, QUEEN MARGOT is dressed-up as a 16th Century
period piece involving French Catholics, Protestants, and the entire
court of King Charles XI.  At the center is Margot (Isabelle Adjani),
the King's Catholic sister, who would like nothing more than to forget
her marriage of convenience to Henri of Navarre (Daniel Auteuil), also a
Protestant.  They were wed for peace, or so they thought, until most of
Henri's guests (1000+) are slaughtered at the Saint Bartholomew's Day
Massacre.

This is strong stuff, and certainly not for the squeamish.  It's also
quite confusing, thanks to the subtitles and the continuous stream of
new characters.  Have no fear, as all becomes clear in due time.  After
about 90 minutes, the actors take over and help transform QUEEN MARGOT
into a simple-- though quite twisted-- love story that just *looks* like
a big historical drama.  (Rated "R"/143 min.)

AWARD NOTE:  Virna Lisi won Best Actress at last year's Cannes Film
Festival for her poisonous portrayal of Court Matriarch Catherine de
Medicis.  Wicked.

Grade: A