The Persecution and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade, usually shortened to Marat/Sade (pronounced [ma.ʁa.sad]), is a 1967 British film adaptation of Peter Weiss's 1964 play. It is directed by Peter Brook, and originated in his stage production for the Royal Shakespeare Company, which later transferred to Broadway. The film stars Ian Richardson, Patrick Magee, Glenda Jackson, Clifford Rose, and Freddie Jones, reprising their roles from the stage version.
The film premiered on 22 February 1967, and received widespread positive reviews from critics.
Contents
Plot
In the Charenton Asylum in 1808, the Marquis de Sade stages a play about the murder of Jean-Paul Marat by Charlotte Corday, using his fellow inmates as actors. The director of the hospital, Monsieur Coulmier, supervises the performance, accompanied by his wife and daughter. Coulmier, who supports Napoleon's government, believes that the play will support his bourgeois and reactionary ideas, and denounce those of the more radical stages of the French Revolution that Marat helped lead. His patients, however, have other ideas, and they make a habit of speaking lines he had attempted to suppress, or deviating entirely into personal opinion. The Marquis himself, meanwhile, subtly manipulates both the players and the audience to create an atmosphere of chaos and nihilism that ultimately brings on an orgy of destruction.
Production
Filming took place at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire. David Watkin was the cinematographer.
Release
The film held its world premiere in New York City on 22 February 1967, and had its UK premiere in London on 8 March.
Reception
Critical response
Roger Ebert gave the film a positive review, "The actors are superb. When we first see the Marquis (Patrick Magee), he looks steadily into the camera for half a minute and the full terror of his perversion becomes clearer than any dialog can make it. Glenda Jackson, as Marat's assassin Charlotte Corday, weaves back and forth between the melancholy of her mental illness and the fire of the role she plays. Ian Richardson, as Marat, still advocates violence and revolution even though thousands have died and nothing has been accomplished."
Film critic Leonard Maltin awarded the film 4 out of a possible 4 stars, calling the film "chilling", and praising the film's atmosphere as being "so vivid that it seems actors are breathing down your neck".
Film review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 94%, based on 14 reviews, with an average rating of 8/10.