Based on the true story of composer Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, the illegitimate son of an African slave and a French plantation owner, rises to heights in French society as a composer before an ill-fated love affair.
Joseph Bologne (Kelvin Harrison, Jr.), an extremely talented young lad, born of a slave mother, Nanon (Ronke Adekoluejo), and plantation owner, George Bologne (Jim Hill) in Guadalupe, France, had only one wish, which was to be recognized for his remarkable musical talents. Plucked from his mother in Guadalupe, France, he was taken by his father to a prestigious boarding school where George negotiated Joseph’s extraordinary musical talent for acceptance into a school that bore no resemblance to his dark skin tone and unique upbringing. To make the best of his unwelcoming at the school, Joseph developed an unforgiving ego and a high aptitude for fencing, leading to him eventually becoming the greatest swordsman in Europe.
Settling in Paris, France, fresh from his unorthodox education, Joseph had to fight tooth and nail for acceptance in 18th-century France. Joseph continued to hone his musical talents to where he would one day walk into a crowded music hall and challenge Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to his own musical compositions. Wooed by the crowd, Bologne took pride in the dueling of violins and made a name for himself as having outshone Mozart in his own circle of friends and admirers. While this lifted Joseph’s ego, it was a bittersweet defeat, as he gave the naysayers yet another reason to hate him and the indelible mark he was making in his racist and woefully challenging surroundings.
To add to the daily challenges of proving himself as a worthy negro, Joseph received word that his father, George, had passed away and left him nothing of his amassed fortune because Joseph had been born a negro child. While this was devastating news at the time, Joseph realized it was the perfect opportunity to grow as a strong Frenchman and reunite with his mother, giving him some semblance of family. While Joseph’s mother, Nanon, was receptive to the reunion, her Caribbean roots posed a challenge for Joseph as his upbringing in an extremely European society robbed him of the opportunity to learn the culture of his native family. As the experience of getting to know one another was challenging at times, Nanon continuously used her motherly advice to nurture Joseph and remind him of the strengths he was born with. As each of them thrived in their own way to bond together, they continued to experience the daily struggles of being in a society that didn’t readily accept them because of their skin color.
While Joseph continued to traverse his options for proving himself worthy, he realized the best way would be to become the most notable musician in Paris, France. In doing so, he awkwardly approached the Queen, Marie Antoinette (Lucy Boynton), and asked for the opportunity to challenge his greatest musical opposition for the position of Chevalier de Saint-Georges. While at first, it seemed like a horrible idea, it soon gained ground, and Joseph was allowed to create an original composition to battle for the impressed with the vocal talents of Marquise de Montalembert. When he initially approached Marie-Josephine (Samara Weaving), she didn’t feel she was good enough to compete, but later changed her mind after Bologne approached her husband, who was adamant that she would not become a local whore and embarrass him and all he stood for. The unapproved relationship soon became Bologne’s Achilles Heel as he fell in love with Marie, and she later bore his child, who was immediately put to death by her husband, Montalembert (Marton Csokas).
Dealing with the death of his own child and the frailty of his own upbringing caused a setback for Bologne. Still, no pain was more significant than the Queen’s decision that the competition was no longer viable as her support for a negro became too much to bear along with her other political challenges. In a drunken stupor, Joseph crashes a party where his competitor is being honored, and he lashes out at the Queen as well as Madame de Genlis (Sian Clifford), who, after being turned down by her advances to Bologne, retaliates and assured him that he would never succeed in her society of influence.
Bologne’s wrath was felt across Europe as his supporters rallied behind him to promote the greatest concert ever, where Bologne chose to showcase his talents to prove his worth. The Queen threatened this event by advising Bologne not to carry it out, or he would be jailed. In the act of political and social defiance, Bologne continued with the concert and met the wrath of his oppressors, who vowed he would never succeed as a negro who pushed the societal envelope and went against the entire political chain of command in a community that wasn’t prepared for the indelible mark he wished to make creating a path for those who followed in his footsteps. While his music was never again supported during his life, he later became a strong fighter as a French soldier and is now recognized as the first Black Music Virtuouso whose compositions hold their own place in musical history.
Director Stephen Williams (“Watchman,” “Lost”) did an excellent job of creating a period piece of racial injustice and musical accomplishments. Actor Kelvin Harrison Jr. played an outstanding role as the villain and the victim, being strong in his pursuit of acceptance in a society that could never accept him for being black, highly intelligent, and exceptionally talented. The supporting cast, including his mother, Ronke Adekoluego, displayed fortitude and strength in a time of pageantry and political uncertainty. This film is a political and social must-see for those who need to understand the struggles and accomplishments of those destined to fail in any capacity yet rose above their own circumstances in the lonely pursuit of justice and equality.
Available on 4K Digital HD Friday, June 16th
