Le dialogue des arts dans les adaptations des Liaisons dangereuses

Abstract

In the films that have been adapted from the Dangerous Liaisons, from Roger Vadim (1960) to the Korean Je Yong Lee (2003), the work of Laclos has been mixed with images from the Age of Enlightenment (Fragonard for Milos Forman) or painters of the classical period (Vermeer in Stephen Frears), either to illustrate the festive atmosphere or as counterpart to the classical composition of the novel. The luxury of the eighteenth-century combined the libertines’ way of life as well as the development of manufactures and nascent industry. This luxury is illustrated by the importance given to the costumes or the interior design that served as backdrop to the adaptations of 1988-89. Music is also given pride of place (jazz in Roger Vadim’s film), especially the opera (in Stephen Frears), in a story which portrays a musician (Danceny).