Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

WillSushyMedia This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

Asad Almond A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

Sienna-Rose Mclaughlin The movie really just wants to entertain people.

denis888 La Révolution française is an outstanding piece of cinema. Made with high budget and awesome cast of world-level stars, this is an incredible depiction of deeply tragic events of French Revolution of the 18th Century. Some critics pointed, however, that the film suffered from its neutrality, which resulted in a lack of point of view and in some incoherence. The first part, which dealt with a rather complex historical subject, was also criticized for its disjointed pacing. The second part was considered more gripping and dramatic. Jean-François Balmer received great praise for his portrayal of a rather sympathetic Louis XVI, and Andrzej Seweryn was considered very convincing as Robespierre. I can only add that this is a Must see and a real severe warning to all of all - revolution is evel, with a Capital E, and it leads only to deaths, suffering, blood, tears, pain, loss, desperation and tragedy.

r-c-s This movie gets a 10 from me for the following reasons: 1. We all know 'documentary' style movies can be either historically accurate or entertaining; rarely both. THE FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE (and its half-baked mediocre colossal remake GLADIATOR ) may be entertaining but mix history with nonsense, fiction and clip lots of edges; DIEN BIEN PHU is a rather historically accurate portrait, yet no entrainment to find there. This movie, in spite of its about 6h running time, is both historically accurate and entertaining: good reconstructions, good acting and historical accuracy, no nonsense or other Hollywood hogwash. The most impressive actor is Balmer as Louis XVI: truly a great performance, at times gut-wrenching. Brandauer as Danton (a bit acted like 007 mr.Largo ) is very good and Seweryn is very good as the demented Robespierre. Without taking explicit sides, this movie shows the revolution in all its aspects; very little edge-clipping (a notable one is omitting that Danton was coming back from Belgium when his wife died; Belgium where he carried his usual backstage deals to increase his own wealth ). The September massacres, the murder of pious princesse de Lamballe (only because she used to be the queen's favorite and had returned to assist her queen ) etc show the irrational, violent, gratuitous side of the revolution; the expedite COMITE DE SALUT as handy political tool to get rid of political opponents. Robespierre growing from self-assertive partisan of freedom into a demented tyrant who loved to compile 'lists' of 'conspirators' in the name of 'virtue'. Exceptionally well-rendered the moment in which he feels he lost power, his hallucinating speeches no longer work...he has a fit like the demented lunatic he is and -like the 'conspirators' he had until then accused- wants to raise in arms against the parliament. Saint-Just is another man growing from maximalist into another demented lunatic. Great reconstructions. A movie really worth watching.

kickright La Revolution Francaise is not a Great Movie, but is very interesting historically speaking. It shows the spectator the most important aspects of the french revolution, without forgetting one. The actors are good, Danton, Desmoulins, Robespierre, Marat, all these great historical characters are good played by Brandauer, Cluzet etc... So I advice to see this movie, which is more pleasant than an history lesson in school! And the music, epic, is a good point for the movie!

pipeoxide It took me over 2 years to actually find this movie (well, they're two parts actually) on tape and it was definitely worth it. I'd seen it on TV when travelling in Europe but remembered it only vaguely...all I knew was that it impressed me tremendously.OK, so the first part, "Les annees lumieres", focuses more on the privileged classes during the Revolution and how 1789 comes to be...LaFayette, Mirabeau, and so on. Most importantly, we get acquainted with our three "protagonists" of sorts -- Danton, Robespierre, and Desmoulins.The yummy parts are actually in the second part called "Les Annees Terribles". Here Heffron masterfully focuses on the triumvirate of power centered around the main characters and how their ideologies distance them from one another. I don't want to get into too much detail, but the dynamics (especially between Danton and Robespierre) are not only cinematically superb but also historically accurate. It should be noted that this isn't some boring historical costume soap-opera...What makes this film (especially the second part) so memorable and vivid in my eyes are the performances. First, German film legend Klaus-Maria Brandauer portrays Danton in a complex and yet very charming manner. He's masculine, powerful, but also tender. This multidimensional portrayal of Danton is something Gerard Depardieu lacked in "Danton", but I'll forgive him. Second, Francois Cluzet does a great job with Camille Desmoulins. He just needs a hug. Lastly, the best performance in the entire film came from the incomparable Andrzej Seweryn as Robespierre. It was a refreshing take on someone usually shown as a bloodthirsty, asexual tyrant. Seweryn delicately balances Robespierre's almost naive yet uncompromising belief in "virtue" with his empty personal life. Here the man behind the Reign of Terror is just that: a man. A man who is conflicted between personal ties and what he believes is best for the people. And when these three excellent performances are meshed together with a great script, we get the best movie on the period ever. If you can find it, definitely see it, c'est le meilleur. Vive la revolution!**UPDATE** I'VE BEEN GETTING TONS OF EMAILS ON WHERE TO BUY THIS IN THE USA. THE ONLY PLACE IS 'VERSION FRANCAISE', BASED IN BETHESDA, MD. Their website is "www.francevision.com" and they have it (still only) in VHS.Hope this helps!!