However, I expected more from a biographical drama about the first dark-skinned composer who experienced any kind of fame in Europe, Joseph Bologne or Chevalier des Saint-Georges. The time and place of the action in “Chevalier” is France on the eve of the revolution, and in the opening scene we meet the virtuoso on the violin in a scene that reminded me of the scene from the cult “Crossroads”. There, the protagonist of the film had a guitar duel no less, no more than with Steve Vai, and Chevalier will engage in a duel with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart there. Unfortunately, that interesting opening scene in which the young mulatto from Guadalupe not only matches the legendary composer, but also defeats him in violin skills, is actually the most interesting part of the film.
Canadian filmmaker Stephen Williams opted for that typical Hollywood superficial, shallow style, which is not surprising given his background, since he is a studio director who has mostly directed episodes of television series since the nineties. The European arty naturalistic style would have suited me much better for this story, and this is how it turned out almost like a variation on the theme of “Dangerous Liaisons” only with the addition of the classic, modern, already chewed over so many times Black Man ih the White World story.
After a short introduction in which we learn that Joseph (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) is the son of a plantation owner in a French colony and a black slave who ended up at school in Paris because of his talent for music and fencing, we follow his fate as a composer. And regardless of the color of his skin, he seems to have a solid position in the high circles of French society, he is even a favorite of Queen Marie Antoinette (Lucy Boynton). But this talented composer and musician will seal his fate when he falls in love with the beautiful and young Marie-Josephine (Samara Weaving). The only problem is that she is married to an older military leader (Marton Csokas has already practiced for the roles of villains), but nevertheless he intended for her the main role in the opera he is composing.
This decision will soon lead to his downfall, and very soon the Chevalier will lose the grace and approval of not only the queen, but also the entire aristocratic circle. In a rough way, he will realize that he will never be equal to the white composers, and when the French revolution starts, he will find himself on the side of the disenfranchised and will start an attack against those with whom he was friends until yesterday. This story offered a really great chance and the story of the first black composer is definitely one of those stories that deserve to be told. But it’s just a shame that it was done in such a superficial and superficial way.