Testament of Orpheus
Final part of Cocteau's Orphic Trilogy, a self-reflective film.
Testament of Orpheus (French: *Le testament d'Orphée*) is a 1960 film, shot mostly in black-and-white but with brief color sequences inserted. Jean Cocteau directed and starred in it, portraying himself as a poet from the 1700s. The cast includes cameos from Pablo Picasso, Jean Marais, Charles Aznavour, Jean-Pierre Leaud, and Yul Brynner. It is the third and final chapter of The Orphic Trilogy, preceded by *The Blood of a Poet* (1930) and *Orphée* (1950).
One critic called the film a "wry, self-conscious re-examination of a lifetime's obsessions," with Cocteau placing himself at the center of the mythological and fictional universe he created across his books, films, plays, and paintings. The movie features several "double takes," including a scene where Cocteau walks past himself and then looks back at his own image—a moment one scholar described as "a retrospective on the Cocteau œuvre."
*The New York Times* deemed the film "self-serving," noting that Cocteau intended its pretension as his final cinematic statement: "as much a long-winded self-analysis as an extraordinary succession of visually arresting images."
Picasso introduced Cocteau to photographer Lucien Clergue, who documented the film's production. Clergue's black-and-white stills were later published in 2001 as *Jean Cocteau and The Testament of Orpheus*.
Quick Facts
- Director
- Jean Cocteau
- Producer
- Jean Thuillier
- Starring
- Jean Cocteau / Édouard Dermit / Henri Crémieux / María Casares / François Périer
- Music
- Georges Auric / George Frideric Handel / Martial Solal
- Cinematography
- Roland Pontoizeau
- Editing
- Marie-Josephe Yoyotte
- Distributor
- Cinédis
- Released
- 18 February 1960
- Runtime
- 80 minutes
- Country
- France
- Language
- French
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
One critic described it as a 'wry, self-conscious re-examination of a lifetime's obsessions' with Cocteau placing himself at the center of the mythological and fictional world he spun throughout his books, films, plays and paintings. The film includes numerous instances of 'double takes', including one scene where Cocteau, walking past himself, looks back to see himself in what was described by one scholar as 'a retrospective on the Cocteau œuvre'.
Reader's Guide
The New York Times called it 'self-serving', noting that the pretension of the film was certainly intended by Cocteau as his last statement made on film: 'as much a long-winded self-analysis as an extraordinary succession of visually arresting images'. Picasso had introduced Cocteau to the photographer Lucien Clergue who was brought in to photo-document the film's production. His black-and-white stills were published in 2001 as Jean Cocteau and The Testament of Orpheus. The film stands as a personal and artistic summation, blending autobiography with myth.
Did You Know?
- The film is in black-and-white with a few seconds of color film spliced into it.
- Jean Cocteau plays himself as an 18th-century poet.
More in French fantasy films 25-40
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