The Affair of the Necklace
The Affair of the Necklace is a 2001 American historical drama film directed by Charles Shyer. The screenplay by John Sweet is based on what became known as the Affair of the Diamond Necklace, an incident that helped fuel the French populaces disillusionment with the monarchy and, among other causes, eventually led to the French Revolution. The film received negative reviews from critics, but the sets, music and costume design were widely praised.
King Louis XV had commissioned Parisian jewellers Boehmer and Bassenge to create an opulent 2,800carat 560g, 647diamond necklace to present to his mistress Madame du Barry, but the king died before it was completed. Hoping to recover the high cost of the necklace, its creators try to persuade Marie Antoinette to purchase it. Knowing its history, she declines.Jeanne approaches debauched libertine Cardinal Louis de Rohan and introduces herself as a confidante of the Queen. For years the Cardinal has yearned to regain the Queens favor and acquire the position of Prime Minister of France, and when he is reassured by occultist Count Cagliostro that Jeanne is legitimate, he allows himself to be seduced by her promise to intervene on his behalf. He begins to correspond with the Queen and is unaware that his letters to her are intercepted and the Queens responses are forgeries intended to manipulate him. The tone of the letters become very intimate. The cardinal becomes more and more convinced that Marie Antoinette is in love with him, and he becomes ardently enamored of her. ........
Source: Wikipedia
