1792. Louis XVI, his wife Marie Antoinette and their children have been arrested and imprisoned in the Temple Tower, a sinister castle in Paris. Far from the splendour of Versailles, they are isolated and vulnerable for the first time in their lives. Gianluca Jodice’s film, which opened the 77th edition of the Locarno Film Festival, shows the last days of Louis XVI (Guillaume Canet) and Marie Antoinette (Mélanie Laurent) as prisoners after their arrest, awaiting the historic trial.
Le Déluge, a metaphorical title that refers to the flood as the fall of the gods, and to the phrase pronounced by Louis XV, grandfather of Louis XVI: ‘Après moi, le déluge’ (‘after me, the flood’) is an Italian-French co-production shot in Piedmont with the support of the Film Commission Torino Piemonte.
The seven weeks of filming, between December 2022 and March 2023, mainly involved the Savoy residences: the Ducal Castle of Agliè; Royal Palace of Venaria Reale; Palazzina di Caccia di Stupinigi and Stupinigi Park of Nichelino.
"It was a complicated procedure to build the Tour du Temple from scratch because nothing of it exists anymore” said producer Matteo Rovere. “An Italian-French ecosystem was created for this story which we saw as a turning point in the history of Europe. Many thanks to the Film Commission of Piedmont and the city of Turin who helped us, allowing us to shoot at the Reggia di Venaria, an extraordinary place that gives back the sense of time".
1792. Louis XVI, his wife Marie Antoinette and their children have been arrested and imprisoned in the Temple Tower, a sinister castle in Paris. Far from the splendour of Versailles, they are isolated and vulnerable for the first time in their lives. Gianluca Jodice’s film, which opened the 77th edition of the Locarno Film Festival, shows the last days of Louis XVI (Guillaume Canet) and Marie Antoinette (Mélanie Laurent) as prisoners after their arrest, awaiting the historic trial.
Le Déluge, a metaphorical title that refers to the flood as the fall of the gods, and to the phrase pronounced by Louis XV, grandfather of Louis XVI: ‘Après moi, le déluge’ (‘after me, the flood’) is an Italian-French co-production shot in Piedmont with the support of the Film Commission Torino Piemonte.
The seven weeks of filming, between December 2022 and March 2023, mainly involved the Savoy residences: the Ducal Castle of Agliè; Royal Palace of Venaria Reale; Palazzina di Caccia di Stupinigi and Stupinigi Park of Nichelino.
"It was a complicated procedure to build the Tour du Temple from scratch because nothing of it exists anymore” said producer Matteo Rovere. “An Italian-French ecosystem was created for this story which we saw as a turning point in the history of Europe. Many thanks to the Film Commission of Piedmont and the city of Turin who helped us, allowing us to shoot at the Reggia di Venaria, an extraordinary place that gives back the sense of time".
Ascent Film with Rai Cinema and Adler; in coproduction with Quad
The mention of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI immediately leads to thoughts of lace, tall wigs, bright dresses, Versailles or the guillotine. Between these extremes, there is a story that no one has yet told: of those few months when the last king and queen of France were imprisoned in a castle on the outskirts of Paris with their two children, awaiting execution. A short and condensed time, where all was unmasked: both the two royals as public and private figures; and history itself as it finally turns the page.
