Testament of Orpheus

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Testament of Orpheus

1960

1h 19m

Fantasy

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

88%

Tomatometer

8 Reviews

81%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

Realizing he is not long for this world, an aging 18th century poet (Jean Marais) travels through time in search of divine wisdom. In a mysterious, possibly post-apocalyptic wasteland, he has a series of enigmatic and surreal encounters with symbolic phantoms (Roger Blin, Brigitte Bardot, Marie Déa) with whom he muses about the nature of art and his own career. Ultimately, the poet strives to achieve his own rebirth as an immortal celestial being.

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Richard Brody

The New Yorker

04/29/2019

Cocteau fits a raging confession into a serene, sensuous neoclassical vessel.

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

01/23/2024

4/5

... this neglected film is a fitting tribute by a great artist to himself; there’s flashes of magic and genuine insight that make it well worth exhuming...

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Carson Timar

ClapperCast

08/17/2023

This is so much to take in. It is incredibly dense and confusing, especially on first viewing, but there is so much here that is undeniably poignant.

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

04/20/2013

B+

The 70-year-old Cocteau plays himself as the eternal poet looking back through his films at himself.

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Jake Euker

F5 (Wichita, KS)

02/18/2007

2/5

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

08/06/2005

4/5

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Thomas V

@TomVee Jul 16

Difficult film, hard to follow and opaque. Maybe I'll give it another chance one day, but not anytime soon.

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Shioka O

@RT54204327 06/01/2025

A beautiful surrealistic imagery of his masturbation. It's the last work by him and he looks charming.

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Luca D

@JoeCamel7 05/16/2024

Definitely my least favorite in the trilogy. The visual effects were lacking for 1960. The set was my favorite part, I like the rawness of the warehouse being used as a set and also the quarry. Probably the only one in be trilogy I wouldn't watch again.

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Courtney K

@c0urtn3y 02/26/2023

i did not realize this was a part of a trilogy, so maybe that's why i didn't enjoy it? there's some interesting imagery, but it seemed like they figured out how to play video clips backwards & then that's all they did for the rest of the film... was repetitive & boring. i actually think i did fall asleep for part of it. i won't be seeking out the first 2 films.

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07/20/2016

Some interesting surrealistic imagery, but overall it comes off as an unappealing vanity project.

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05/06/2016

Jean Cocteau's final film of his "Orphic Trilogy" is "The Testament of Orpheus" stars Cocteau as himself trying to understand the world of an artist. Interseting film full of trick shots and mild surrealism.

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Jean Cocteau

Director

Jean Marais

Oedipe

François Perier

Heurtebise

María Casares

La princesse

Marie Déa

Actor

Juliette Gréco

Actor

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Synopsis

Realizing he is not long for this world, an aging 18th century poet (Jean Marais) travels through time in search of divine wisdom. In a mysterious, possibly post-apocalyptic wasteland, he has a series of enigmatic and surreal encounters with symbolic phantoms (Roger Blin, Brigitte Bardot, Marie Déa) with whom he muses about the nature of art and his own career. Ultimately, the poet strives to achieve his own rebirth as an immortal celestial being.

Director: Jean Cocteau
Producer: Jean Thuillier, François Truffaut
Production Co: Les Editions Cinégraphiques
Genre: Fantasy, Drama
Original Language: French (France)
Runtime: 1h 19m

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