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| Review by Elizabeth Robbins |
Yves Saint Laurent revolutionized fashion.
He saw it as an art form.
The Yves Saint Laurent Couture House was one of the first of the great French fashion houses to create a prêt-à-porter (ready-to-wear) line, making haute couture fashion accessible to the average person.
His work has been on exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
His mark on fashion is still felt today.
Jalil Lespert’s Yves Saint Laurent is a beautifully crafted film, full of style that non the less reveals the deeply flawed man that was a revolutionary force in fashion for more than five decades.
The film is a love story, told with the voice of Yves Saint Laurent’s business partner and long-time lover, Pierre Bergé. It begins with Saint Laurent’s early days as Christian Dior’s protégé. Dior saw Saint Laurent as his successor, and as result the 21 year old Saint Laurent was promoted to head designer of the famous fashion house after Dior’s death.
Shortly after, Yves Saint Laurent meets Pierre Bergé.
The two fall in love, but their romance is interrupted by Saint Laurent’s conscription into the French army and his subsequent mental breakdown. It is then that Saint Laurent is diagnosed with manic depressive disorder. During his hospitalization, house of Dior replaces Saint Laurent as head designer. He loses everything, except Bergé. Pierre Bergé stands by Saint Laurent and together they found the House of Yves Saint Laurent.
Pierre Niney is marvelous as Yves Saint Laurent. His balance between the sweet, painfully shy artist and the arrogant, manic depressive genius keeps the viewer enthralled. A lesser performer would have made me lose patience with such a deeply flawed character, but Niney coaxes you along with the promise that there is something beautiful on the other side of his sickness.
Guillaume Gallienne’s Pierre Bergé is the steady rock in Yves Saint Laurent’s life. He is there to deal with the day to day details, both in life and business, leaving Saint Laurent to create. Gallienne is bold in his performance. Bergé is depicted both protective and controlling; loving and cruel.
Both men are shown as real people, warts and all. The supporting cast anchor these two intense performances, allowing them to live and breathe in a real world.
As would be expect with a film of this subject matter, the set and costume designs are immaculate. Each decade is lovingly recreated. Lespert worked with the Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent Foundation, giving him access to many of the vintage outfits in its collection for use in the film, insuring that Yves Saint Laurent’s fashion was authentic.
Yves Saint Laurent is not for everyone.
It is somewhat like haute couture itself, something you admire for its grandeur, but is inaccessible to the casual viewer.
However, for those looking for a peek into Yves Saint Laurent’s and Pierre Bergé’s lives, it is an eye-opening portrait of the power couple.
