Romantic Movie Review: Marguerite & Julien

I just finished watching the french movie "Marguerite and Julien", it was a very beautiful and heartbreaking movie, I couldn't help but be captivated by it. The movie is about a brother and sister, who are deeply attached to each other since their childhood and who have nearly every one against them since they were children.

Marguerite and Julien were inseparable, Marguerite was Julien’s best friend and he would even stare at her all day, draw her, and play together. Their Parents noticed a "strange" bond and tried to separate them. They sent Julien to different place and school with his older brother, while Marguerite was kept at home. They grew up apart and reunited after many years but still longed for each other. Julien and Marguerite try to stay away from each other but struggling against their feelings.

The film focuses on Marguerite getting married with older guy, but there is no rush for Julien to marry. When Marguerite married to the older guy, Marguerite became a prisoner with only one visitor (Marguerite and Julien’s only ally who moves letters back and forth). When she refuses to make love with her husband, he decided to pay “loose women”.

Marguerite & Julien is actually based on a true story. There was a Marguerite and Julien de Ravalet who lived in the late 16th century. They had more siblings than is showed in the film (11 vs. 3). Other characters like Marguerite's husband and their parents, appear to be true to life; however the timing of real events may be a little different. Marguerite and Julien were executed on December 2, 1603 on charges of adultery and incest after Marguerite gave birth.

I definitely enjoy a beautiful love story, even incest stories, and if you have an open mind, this movie is really nice. The heart of the story is the everlasting, passionate love between two aristocratic siblings Marguerite (Anais Demoustier) and Julien (Jeremie Elkaim). The acting was so impressive, the locations and all the French cast with whom I was unfamiliar, were so nice to see. I was routing for Marguerite and Julien, and their beautiful love story but things don’t work out as well as one might wish. Notwithstanding, I loved the movie, overall.