by Stephen Leonard

Created on: March 13, 2007   Last Updated: May 09, 2007

Molire, The Story of How a Tragic Failure Became One of the Greatest Writers Ever

"Writing is like prostitution. First you do it for love, and then for a few close friends, and then for money."
-Molire

Molire was a terrible playwright.

Had he stuck to writing tragedies, that would have been his epitaph, had anyone bothered to write one for a man whose closest friends told him he simply was no good at writing for dramatic effect.

Happily though, millions of words adorn countless colorful biographies about one of France's many literary treasures, thanks to the fact that Jean-Baptiste Poquelin indeed gave in and embraced his talent for farce, thus becoming the man the literary world knows today by the simple self-given alias, Molire.

Fusing his natural comedic talents with the Italian Commedia dell'Arte style of theatre popular in 17th century France, Molire wittily mocked upper class French society, the hypocrisy of the Church, and the charlatanism of the era's medical practitioners.

"The duty of comedy is to correct men by amusing them."
-M

Wildly popular, always controversial, Molire was the man of his times, his legend only increasing with each play his troupe put on, until he nearly literally died on stage during a performance of Le Malade Imaginaire.

As if to prove to doubters that he could play tragedy, he collapsed in the middle of the play, and died hours later in his home.

Over 330 years after his death, the celebrated creator of such theatre classics as Tartuffe and L'Ecole des Femmes is alive on the big screen, interpreted by one of French film's great young actors, Romain Duris.

Duris has built up an impressive resum for himself, most notably as Xavier in the internationally acclaimed comedy L'Auberge Espagnol and its sequel Les Poupes Russes, as well as his Csar-winning turn as the mobster Thomas, who dreams of being a concert pianist in De Battre Mon Coeur S'est Arrt.

In Laurent Tirard's Molire, Duris portrays the young playwright before he is famous.

Much in the style of Shakespeare in Love, the film posits a maybe' scenario, introducing fictitious characters into Molire's life, who of course will become types for his later works.

While the majority of the film is itself a farce, Duris treats Molire with appropriate seriousness.

"The trees that are slow to grow bear the best fruit."
-M

In every role Duris brings to the screen, there is a depth to his character.

Viewers can feel the turbulent waters stirring within Duris' Molire, below one of his squinty smirks or

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