By Suman Bhuchar
Grace of Monaco, the opening film at the 67th Cannes Film Festival, is due to go on general release in the UK on 6 June.
This biopic of Hollywood star, Grace Kelly and her marriage to Prince Rainier 111 of Monaco (played here by Nicole Kidman and Tim Roth respectively) received a lot of negative press in the mainstream media; however, for me it was one of the main reasons why I attended the Cannes Festival 2014 as it is another key moment between Western and Indian cinema to create a new type of cinematic culture.
This film, directed by Olivier Dahan is tastefully done with some fine performances by the two leads as well as Frank Langella as Father Francis Tucker and a wonderful cameo by Sir Derek Jacobi.
What makes it eventful is that it marks the arrival of YRF Entertainment on the global entertainment scene.
This Los Angeles based production and financing company, headed by actor turned producer, CEO, Uday Chopra, is wholly owned subsidiary of Yash Raj Films (YRF), one of India’s leading studios producing Bollywood fims.
YRF Entertainment is focused on developing and producing feature films for the United States and international marketplace.
Chopra – for whom it was his first Cannes – said that it was surreal moment walking down the Red Carpet climbing those twenty-four steps to the Festival Palais and into the Grand Theatre Lumiėre with Nicole Kidman and other stars.
“It was surreal, it was surreal for me,” he repeats, “though I do come from a big studio back home, but being here, I felt wow I am really walking with these people. It was a really proud moment.”
The film received a standing ovation after the screening, tweeted its writer, Arash Amel.
Talking to the media – after the inauguration of the Indian Pavilion in Cannes – the words tumble out in a rush, as Chopra explains how he got involved.
“I was looking for material to get into as a financier, producer, and my colleague, Jonathan Reiman who heads my LA office told me there’s this very interesting script based on the life of Grace Kelly.
At that time Nicole (Kidman) wasn’t attached but they were speaking to her and Olivier Dahan was directing, and I thought that was a very interesting way of putting the story together, so he sent me the script and I immediately fell in love with it.”
He says he remembers reading it and instantly wanting to get the rights for the story.
“The script was bought by Pierre-Ange Le Pogam (an experienced producer) from Arash Amel on spec. I took a plane to Paris and Jonathan joined me and we struck a deal right there and then, I said I want to be part of the movie co produce it with you and that’s the story of how I got into it.”
Amel who was born and brought up in Wales is of Iranian heritage. He now lives in Los Angeles, and three years ago he had this idea for a story on Grace. His script was listed in the 2011 Hollywood Black List – a survey published every year of the ‘most liked screenplays’ and was purchased by Le Pogam in a competitive bid.
Grace of Monaco is set in1962 about six years after their marriage on 19 April 1956, when the couple have had two kids, Caroline and Albert.
Grace is trying to find a role for herself as a wife and mother, while Prince Rainier is engulfed in a political crisis with the President Charles De Gaulle wanting Monaco subjects to pay taxes to France.
In comes ‘Hitch’ (director, Albert Hitchcock) to tempt the star back to the big screen by offering her a part in his forthcoming film, Marnie.
Alongside, this there is palace intrigue and general coolness of the subjects to Grace as a royal befitting the status of the House of Grimaldi.
As Chopra explained it to the India media: “That’s maybe why I responded to it, it was an Indian story about family, and I think it resonates with a lot of Indians as well especially the female audience, because it’s primarily about a woman whose at a place where she doesn’t really feel that she belongs, and I think in India, specially women go through that a lot – when they have arranged marriages they may not marry a prince of a nation, but in their minds they are actually marrying a prince.”
Even though some of the film – especially the last scene of the film was shot in Monaco with the permission of the authorities, the Royal family has dissociated itself from the project pointing out that it does not reflect reality and is not a historical retelling. Alongside this, one of the film’s producers, Harvey Weinstein, has also had difficulties with the director, and has wanted to re-edit the film to suit American taste.
“It’s blown a little bit out of proportion,” explains Chopra, “but there is no separate Weinstein cut as such, it’s Olivier Dahan’s movie and if there is going to be any change on that, Olivier will work with Harvey on that and it will be Olivier’s vision going forward.”
Despite all the problems, Grace of Monaco is a really enjoyable well told story, with populist appeal which was really crying out for a song and dance. Perhaps this might have quelled some of the dissenting voices.
In the meantime, Chopra is looking forward to more stories with international appeal and is working with Amel on another factual story based on a book, Seducing Ingrid Bergman by Chris Greenhalgh.
“It’s a lovely real life Casablanca type moment that happened with Ingrid Bergman and photographer, Robert Capa during World War 11 in Paris, then he follows her back to Los Angeles at which point the McCarthy witch hunts happen and he was a foreigner and they couldn’t be together and there was this whole tragic kind of a love affair because she was a married woman.”
Grace of Monaco is also to be released in India by YRF on June 13, and the producers are hoping that Nicole Kidman will attend.
* Suman Bhuchar was at the 67th Cannes Film Festival to cover events and films reports for GG2
