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12 Jun 23
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"This story can't really be true, can it?" And "Why haven't I heard this before?" are questions thrumming through your mind as you marvel at Chevalier. This sumptuous costume biopic reveals the incredible untold story of 18th-century French composer Joseph Bologne (Kelvin Harrison Jr.).
Dubbed "the most talented man in Europe" by American President John Adams, Bologne was a superstar of his age. A champion swordsman (he was Europe's most undefeated fencer) and dashing trendsetter as well as an ingenious composer and violinist, he was titled Chevalier de Saint-Georges by Queen Marie Antoinette (Lucy Boynton) and a favourite at her court.
That Bologne was also the illegitimate son of a Black African slave and a white French plantation owner made his stellar rise in pre-Revolution French society all the more improbable, his achievements more remarkable and his defiant journey even more inspiring. It sadly also explains why his trail-blazing legacy was nearly erased from history.
Until now.
Scriptwriter Stefani Robinson (Atlanta) first came across Bologne's biography as a teenager and it blew her mind. As she puts it, "His life had so many arcs and it was extraordinarily cinematic.
Joseph always felt like a rock star to me." That's certainly the electrifying energy Kelvin Harrison Jr. taps into for Chevalier's thrilling opening scene. Essentially a jaw-dropping "rap battle" — albeit with men in wigs and violins — between Bologne and Mozart, it's truly edge-of-seat stuff.
Harrison (Luce, Waves, Elvis) has said he drew on Prince and Jimi Hendrix for Bologne's swagger. A charismatic yet chameleonic performer, this BAFTA-nominated rising star is an actor who disappears into his roles. He went an extra mile for this one, learning to fence from a master and play the violin for seven hours a day, as well as researching everything that's still on record about Bologne, on a mission to make this extraordinary real-life character speak to a new generation.
That was the aim of Emmy-winning director/ producer Stephen Williams. A seasoned TV director (Lost, Westworld, Watchmen), he's clearly having a ball (literally — because what period drama is complete without one?) with a big-screen scale to play with. Chevalier boasts all the lavish costumes, detailed sets and grand designs your heaving bosom may desire.
Samara Weaving (as Bologne's star-crossed love interest), Minnie Driver (as the seductive villain) and Ronkę Adékoluęjo (as his wise mother) round out an impressive female supporting cast that also includes Sian Clifford (aka Fleabag's sister).
The latter is just a tantalising bit part as Madame De Genlis, a real-life French noblewoman, musician and author of some 120 books. She is yet another astonishing figure lost from history who deserves a spin-off biopic in her own right.
Ultimately, though, Chevalier isn't just a fascinating and long-overdue reclamation of Black talent. What makes it strike a universal, emotional chord is how Williams and Robinson zero in on the pressure Joseph felt, as a non-white man, to be 10 times better than his white peers. Bologne's struggle to "be excellent" — as he is commanded by his father — and conform to what's expected, is something most of us can relate to. Chevalier is, above all, a powerful journey towards self-acceptance. 
Larushka Ivan-Zadeh
What did you respond to in the character of Joseph Bologne?
I felt I could understand him as a Black artist. His path reflects how we all struggle to find the spaces where we can be seen and heard. This story asks big questions about art and equality and why so many Black artists have been erased, but it's also a beautiful celebration of the Chevalier's life.
What kind of prep did you do?
I read all I could, looked at the pictures that exist, listened to his music, but no matter the research, you have to find the things that resonate deeply with you and then go to a new place with them. I can't become Joseph; I can only put everything into my own personal interpretation of him.
What do you remember about shooting the violin duel with Mozart?
That scene was one of the first things I started learning on the violin because it's the hardest piece in the movie. It was really exciting for me to try to access that rock star side of Joseph. I worked with a brilliant movement coach, Polly Bennett, and we tried to make the way he works the stage really fun. It felt like a rap battle with two guys in wigs each trying to prove they're the best.
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