Catherine (1986 TV series)
| Catherine | |
|---|---|
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| Genre | historic series |
| Based on |
Catherine, il suffit d'un amour by Juliette Benzoni |
| Screenplay by | Juliette Benzoni & Jean Chatenet |
| Directed by | |
| Starring |
Claudine Ancelot Amidou Corinne Touzet |
| Music by | Robert Viger |
| Country of origin | France |
| Original language(s) | French |
| No. of episodes | 60 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Catherine Jurquet production assistant |
| Running time | 26 minutes |
| Release | |
| Original network | Antenne 2 |
| Original release | 19 March 1986 |
Catherine, il suffit d'un amour was a French television series produced by Antenne 2 in 1986, based on the Catherine novels written by best-selling French author Juliette Benzoni. The adaptation stayed more or less true to the original text of Juliette Benzoni's story about Catherine and her adventures in France during the 15th century. The screenplay was written by Benzoni and , and directed by , who had already successfully directed another of Benzoni's best-selling novel series Marianne with Corinne Touzet in the leading role.
The story takes place at the time of the Hundred Years' War in France, during the Armagnac-Burgundian Civil War. John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, is locked in a bitter merciless struggle against the Armagnacs, supporters of the future King Charles VII. During the Parisian riots of 1413 Catherine Legoix, daughter of a goldsmith living on the Pont-au-Change, tries to save a young Armagnac knight, the sixteen year old Michel de Montsalvy who is condemned to be hanged for spitting at Duke John and calling him a traitor.
Catherine hides him in the family's cellar, but he and her father are murdered by a cousin, the wealthy butcher Thomas Legoix. Thirteen year old Catherine and her mother flee to Dijon to the home of her maternal uncle Mathieu Gautherin, a merchant and winegrower. They are accompanied by Sara the Black, a young gypsy who had previously hidden the fugitives in the cour des miracles house of the beggar Barnaby of the Cockleshell. The attempt to save Michel de Montsalvy changes her life forever. Years later, after growing up to be a golden haired violet eyed beauty, Catherine meets a wounded knight; the noble Arnaud de Montsalvy, one of Joan of Arc's captains, and Michel de Montsalvy's younger brother.
Catherine and Arnaud fall in love at first sight, but when Arnaud finds out that Catherine is related to the family who butchered his older brother, he tells her he does not kill her only because she is a woman. Her outstanding beauty attracts the attention of Duke Philip the Good who desires her and orders his treasurer Garin de Brazey to marry Catherine so she can be received at court, despite her low birth. As Catherine believes Arnaud is about to marry Isabelle de Sévérac, she becomes the mistress of the powerful Duke, and he showers her with titles, castles, jewellery, and servants. She becomes the most beloved favourite at his courts in Dijon and Bruges, where she meets important figures such as Flemish painter Jan van Eyck, Jean Lefèvre de Saint-Rémy, Gilles de Rais, Jacques Coeur, and Yolande d'Aragon After their four year old son Philippe de Brazey dies, she discovers Arnaud de Montsalvy never married. Never having been able to forget her hopeless passion for the proud knight, she travels to the beleaguered city of Orléans where Arnaud and the other captains of Joan of Arc are fighting against the English. During her stay in Orléans she meets Joan of Arc who saves her life, after Catherine has been condemned to death for treason and spying for the enemy.
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