01 July
2017
“The Death of Louis XIV (La Mort de Louis
XIV)”---The O.P.E.N. (Singapore International Festival of Arts)
Release Year: 2016
Country: France, Spain
Director: Albert Serra
Cast: Jean-Pierre Leaud
Location I watched: The Projector
In August of 1715, “Le Roi Soleil (the Sun
King)”, Louis XIV feels a pain in his left leg after going for a morning walk.
From that point, “The Death of Louis XIV”
scrupulously shows the king’s condition until his death by gangrene of his leg
on the 1st of September.
The camera does not leave the palace
building, just like the King who has to be stuck on his bed. As the windows are
not opened, even in daytime, his bedroom is left in the twilight. At night, the
room vanished into the darkness. The small light from the outside or a candle
is focusing on the King. Around him, his doctor or valets are working like
shadows in the vague dark.
Even if he is suffering from a serious
disease, the King has to be king. He still has to wear a wig and receive his
courtiers in audience. On the other hand, the King is taken care of by many
people. Not only people who are working in the palace, but also scholars from
the Sorbonne come for him. The King lies down on the luxurious bed and drinks
water from a crystal glass. Expensive and nutritious food is always served for
him. What a high life with duties! However, the death of the King does not have
a significant difference from death in our own day. While the disease is
covering his body, he is getting weaker and weaker. At first, he cannot stand
up, and then he cannot sit up in bed, and cannot swallow food. Finally he
cannot drink even water. The slow death would possibly happen to us in a present
day hospital room with much more advanced medical technology than the King’s
era.
The most impressive point is that the King
does not easily pass away, while he is enduring such severe pain that he wished
to cut off his leg. Priests were invited to his bedroom many times, but the
time does not come. Once priests are invited and starting the Communion service
for people around the King’s bed, the King is still eating a piece of biscuit
and sipping drink. His body is dying, but his eyes facing the camera are still
burning with the will to live. Humans’ strength to stay alive is amazing.
However, humans are not immortal. The King even tried “medicine” brought by an
impostor (it is like we try a suspicious folk remedy in desperate condition),
but nobody can save him. Finally the fire of the King’s life is snuffed out, in
a natural and quiet way. It would also possibly happen on us.
“The Death of Louis XIV“ was screened at
8 pm on Sunday. It is a good film, but after watching such an uncheerful theme
film on a Sunday night, I did not feel like going to work tomorrow morning.
(July 15, 2017)
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