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(France/US) Produced by Bravo (US), DD (Depardieu's production company), GMT (FR), TF1 (Fr) and other assorted European production houses. Directed by Josée Dayan (Count of Monte Cristo, Les Misérables). Based on the life of writer Honoré de Balzac.
Cast: Gérard Depardieu (as Balzac), Fanny Ardant, Jeanne Moreau, Katja Riemann and Virna Lisi
Plot: This life story of the 19th century French writer, Honoré de Balzac, is mainly a recounting of his relationship with women: first, his demanding mother, Charlotte-Laure (played by Jeanne Moreau). She is a money-focused old woman who sees Balzac as a n'ere-do-well dreamer, a spendthrift and a failure. Of his loves, there is the elderly Madame de Berney (Virna Lisi) who is gentle and supportive and demands little. He cheats on her by courting the younger Laure d'Abrantès (Katja Riemann) and finally falls in love with a married woman, Countess Eva Hanska (Fanny Ardent). Just as he is having success with his writing and has finally married his great love (Hanska) he succumbs to a fatal illness.
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