Lovin’ the Bad Guys: Les Liaisons Dangereuse Strikes Again
Laura Linney, shown here at curtain call, is part of an all-star cast in the revival of Les Liasons Dangereuse. She plays La Marquise de Merteuil, a scheming and conniving woman who plays with peoples affections and lives for her own amusements. Her opposite number in the play is Le Vicomte de Valmont, played by Ben Daniels, is equally a manipulator and cad, preying on the innocent and defiling and corrupting simply for the pleasure of seeing them fall.
Many movie goers would recognize the story from Dangerous Liaisons, starring Glen Close and John Malkovich , but many people would be surprised to find out that the original play was written as a novel by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos in 1782. That’s right, 225 years ago this story was a hit.
What is it about this story that lasts over two centuries? There have been superpowers that don’t last this long; hell, the U.S.A. is only a few years older. But here’s Laura taking a bow to a sold-out house before going off to party with Rosie Perez and Sigourney Weaver. Is is really that universal a theme? Why do we enjoy watching people tear down victims (and each other)? I don’t want to give anything away, but this is not the feel good play of any century. It’s hard to watch, hard to take for me, and I don’t quite understand.
Maybe it’s the same thing that keeps us coming back to watch Richard III woo the widow, or see Oedipus go blind yet again. There’s something about the human condition that keeps us coming back to watch these train wrecks of relationships, maybe if only to go back home, cuddle up to our sweetie, and thank the gods that that isn’t us.
image courtesy of Newscom
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