How the film "Angelica - Marquise of Angels" was filmed: footage from the filming and 18 interesting facts about the film (21 photos)

The first film about a charming blonde who can conquer anyone from a king to a tramp is 60 years old.





1. I think it’s no secret that the series of films about Angelica is an adaptation of the novels of the same name. The original novels were written by Anne and Serge Golon.

And you know what's most interesting? Serge Golon's real name is Vsevolod Sergeevich Golubinov, who during the Civil War (namely in 1920) emigrated from Sevastopol to Constantinople, and then to France (Marseille), where he later took a French pseudonym.



Serge and Anne Golon

It was in France that he met his future wife Simone Shange. Together they took the pseudonyms Anne and Serge Golon, and it was under them that they wrote their first book about Angelique.

Perhaps it was precisely because of this that books about Angelique enjoyed even greater success in the USSR than in France. And as Anne Golon argued, the image of Geoffrey from the novel was partially copied from Serge.

True, in the Soviet Union the books were subject to great censorship, which is why a good part was mercilessly cut out.

2. The rights to film the book were purchased on the condition that the authors of the original book would not interfere with the filming process. Also, the original authors had no right to interfere in the casting process.





The studio bosses wanted the film to be its own work, so the presence of the original authors could only aggravate the entire filming process.

Therefore, screenwriters were hired who, although they followed the book, still contributed a lot of their own personal ideas. As a result, Anne Golon was dissatisfied with the film adaptation, saying that the film does not have the same spirit of Angelica that she described in the novel.

3. In the role of Angelica, they wanted to see an eminent and recognizable actress with whom they could collaborate for a long time. And the studio's main choice was one of the most famous blondes - Brigitte Bardot. But the actress refused this role, since she was already busy filming another film, and she simply did not want to play in another historical film, where she would be dressed in various outfits of the past.



Brigitte Bardot

But when the films about Angelica received a huge portion of success, Brigitte Bardot greatly regretted that she refused to star in this film.

4. Many famous beauties of that time auditioned for the role of Angelica herself, including Jane Fonda, Monica Vitti, Catherine Deneuve and Marina Vladi.

As a result, Marina Vladi was chosen for the main role. But when she learned that Geoffrey would be played by her ex-husband Robert Hossein, she immediately refused the role of Angelique.



Robert Hossein and Marina Vlady

5. After an unsuccessful casting, director Bernard Borderie and the producer decided to look at other actresses who were not blondes. After several auditions, it was brunette Michelle Mercier's turn.

The director chased the actress around the set so much, constantly demanding something from her and shouting at her, that Michelle could not stand it and simply tore off her wig, trampling on it harshly. After that, she left the site in anger.



Michel Mercier in his youth

It was after this act that director Bernard Borderie decided that this was exactly the Angelica they were looking for. Well, the problem with blond hair was solved simply - actress Michelle Marcier wore a wig, although many people think that she simply dyed her hair.



6. French director Rocher Vadim advised his colleague Bernard Borderie to cast his friend, the famous actor Robert Hossein, in the role of Geoffrey. But Robert himself did not want to play “a hunchbacked, ugly old man with a huge scar,” as Geoffrey was presented in the book.



Then the producers made concessions and made Geoffrey younger, deprived him of his hump, and made the scar smaller than it should have been.

By the way, Robert Hossein himself, although he is a FrenchmanZom, and was born in Paris, is the son of a violinist from Azerbaijan (Andre Hossein) and a Kiev woman of Jewish origin (Anna Minkovskaya). Even his children, who were born in marriage with Marina Vladi, are called Igor and Peter.



As a result, Robert Hossein even liked his makeup (scar), which he often did not take off after filming ended in order to make fun of people, telling them tall tales about how he received this injury. He even told waitresses in restaurants these stories.

By the way, if women remember Robert Hossein mainly from films about Angelique, then male audiences will certainly remember him for his role as Commissioner Rosen from the film “The Professional” with Jean Paul Belmondo.

7. The film's location shooting (castles and estates) actually took place in France, while the stage shooting took place in one of the film studios in Rome (Italy). True, the last film, “Angelique and the Sultan,” had to be filmed in Tunisia.



8. Even before signing the contract, Michelle Mercier indicated that she refused to act in explicit scenes. Therefore, even during the showing of scenes with a naked actress, she was allowed only to a certain place, which the actress herself designated by sticking red pieces of fabric. And if the operator had filmed her below the permitted places, the frame would simply have been ruined.



And in those scenes where the actress was shown naked (from the back), the actress demanded that all male members of the film crew be removed except the cameraman and director. True, as the director himself admitted later, some men still hid behind the scenery to spy on the actress.

9. To make Angelica’s skin look more interesting and exude a certain shimmer, her entire body was covered with a special compound, the glow from which was especially noticeable in the dark.



10. Actor Ali Ben Ayed, who played the padishah in the film “Angelica and the Sultan,” had serious health problems. Then Michelle Mercier contributed to the casting of Ali Ben Ayed's wife, Wilma Landamar, as the Sultan's concubine. In this way, the wife could always be close to her husband and take care of him.



11. In just five years (1964-1968), 5 films about Angelica were released. The last of them was the film “Angelica and the Sultan”.

But in the USSR, the film “Angelica and the Marquise of Angels” was first shown only a year after the release of the last film, that is, in 1969. But the Soviet audience appreciated this film, and in the end it was watched by about 44 million viewers.



12. In each part of the film, Angelique had to wear several dozen costumes, so after the end of filming of each film, actress Michelle Mercier kept a couple of dresses for herself as a souvenir.

Many years later, these dresses came in handy for her. In the late 90s, she had huge financial problems, which is why she had to sell the very dresses she wore in the Angelica films. True, she still left one dress.



13. The music for the films about Angelique was written by the famous French composer Michel Magne, who wrote the music for the film "Fantômas", which was released in the same 1964 as the first film about Angelique.

14. The difference between the original (book) Angelique and Geoffrey is exactly the same as the difference between Michel Mercier and Robert Hossein, namely 12 years.



15. Jean Rochefort, who played Francois Degre, later admitted that he hates films about Angelique, and considers Michelle Mercet herself to be a harpy who can destroy any man. But why did he star in these films then? The answer is simple - solely because of money.



Jean Rochefort and Michel Mercier

16. Later, Michelle Mercier admitted that many men associated her with Angelica, which is why they often staged scenes of jealousy.



And despite her bright and beautiful appearance, she never achieved personal family happiness.I didn’t see her, despite the fact that she was married four times (two times officially and two times in a civil marriage). Michelle never had children either.

17. In addition to the series of films about Angelique, Michel Mercier and Robert Hossein appeared together in three more films - “Rope and Colt”, “The Second Truth” and “Thunder from Heaven”.



Still from the film "The Second Truth"

True, there was never a strong friendship between them. At first, they were constantly quarreling, and then they seemed to work together, but they tried to treat each other more neutrally. Therefore, they especially did not like it when viewers and the media attributed an affair to them.



Michel Mercier and Robert Hossein in old age

18. In 2013, a remake of the film “Angelica: Marquise of Angels” was released. But the film failed at the box office and was trashed by critics. The production was very bad, and the actors were chosen simply disgustingly. Well, just look at the locals Geoffrey and Nicolas.



Performers of the roles of Geoffrey and Nicolas in the remake of the film "Angelique. Marquise of Angels"