and just about everyone else . who know that deception and treachery and and revenge could be this tedious . although the period production design be reasonable and this film suffers from lax direction and the presence of an ` international cast and with the resultant mix of accent and act style . of the good know thespian and geraldine chaplin again demonstrate that she inherit her mother look but not her father talent and whereas the best that can be say of american elizabeth shue and jessica lange be that they be woefully miscast . a a courtesan and ms. shue exhibit about as much ability to drive men to ruin a a stale baguette and while a rosy cheeked and unwrinkled ms. lange deliver a studied and monotone performance relieve only by occasional lapse into a southern accent . this gallic debacle leave this reviewer wonder if the final musical sequence be indicative of a certain regard for the audience and and firmly convince that bring french literature to the screen be best leave to the french .