TBT: Quentin Durward (1955)

I have a soft spot for Quentin Durward (1955) — also known as The Adventures of Quentin Durward — despite it being the least successful of the Sir Walter Scott trilogy starring Robert Taylor. The first, Ivanhoe (1952) and Knights of the Round Table (1953), were more popular at the box office, and all three were made by the same director and producer and filmed at MGM’s British studios and on location.

The story is light and silly — Quentin (Robert Taylor) is a poor Scotsman sent by his rich old uncle to France to procure a politically advantageous (and younger) wife for the older man. The intended bride, Isabelle, is a fictional ward of the real Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, and since Isabelle is none too thrilled about the setup, she runs off to King Louis XI. This pisses off Charles, so Quentin finds himself in the middle of the French factions. There’s a lot more silliness running around in the woods with brigands and showy court functions.

There’s some nice exterior scenes shot at pretty castles — specifically the Château de Chambord is used as the Duke of Burgundy’s chateau, which is inaccurate since construction didn’t begin on it until 1519 and Charles died in 1477. Not to mention this chateau is in the Loire area of France, while the Duchy of Burgundy is to the east. I think the point is to show a bigger castle than the King of France’s, since he’s shown with his court at the Château de Chenonceau. Lovely, but much smaller, and also inaccurate as the current version dates to the 1550s, and it wasn’t a royal residence, unless you count Henri II giving it to his mistress Diane de Poitiers in 1547.

The opening title card names the year as 1465, and the costumes are a solid attempt at the period for the 1950s. Isabelle and other ladies of the court don’t have too obvious bullet bras underneath their gowns, and they do have a variety of hennins, veils, and other headgear. Unfortunately, the hairstyles and makeup are standard-issue 1950s movie star.

This promo shot shows this excellent necklace, and you can see that totally modern hair.

I stared at that necklace a lot, thinking it was a repro from a portrait. It’s not exact, but it’s definitely in the style of period jewelry.

This gown has a high collar and a wild color combo.

This behind-the-scenes picture shows her collar better, plus more excellent period-style jewelry.

Compare Isabelle’s gowns with these ladies:

I love this velvet gown, even if the neckline shape is weird. The velvet moved beautifully onscreen

But then there’s this clunker — a fairytale elf caftan for a “romantic” scene. sad trombone

Her final costume is back to more historical styles.

I feel like the neckline and belt are going for this:

The men’s costumes are also quite decent. Sure, Quentin spends most of the movie in that black studded uniform working for the King of France, but he doesn’t start that way.

When he’s with his uncle in Scotland, he gets proper 15th-c. men’s kit.

Actually looks a lot like the previous King of France, minus the hat and plus the fancy man-bag.

I do love a fancy man-bag, having studied the medieval and renaissance varieties a fair bit, such as these:

Also hats! While the movie doesn’t have nearly enough, there are some. Quentin wears this attempt at a bycoket when he’s outside and helping Isabelle’s travels.

Variations on the bycoket were worn from the 14th through 16th centuries, such as:

Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, wears the fanciest garb, showing he’s the richest and most powerful dude, challenging the king.

His first outfit is a robe that’s right out of period imagery:

He also wears classic black with chaperon headdress with fancy edging, also typical of the period.

Such as:

The duke and his courtiers’ outfits have the general shape and style of the late 15th century, even if their hair screams 1950s.

Compare with:

For the final scene,  one in gold lame with another fancy man-bag!

Louis XI doesn’t get much of interest in the way of costumes — just generic “royal” robes — but his court is well-appointed and the background is filled with ladies in hennins.

Have you seen The Adventures of Quentin Durward? Are you a fan of 1950s medieval movies?