Robespierre and all the characters in his faction are played by Polish actors speaking in Polish, dubbed into French for the French release, while Danton and all the characters in his faction are played by French actors speaking in French.
Reportedly the favorite film of Michael Jackson.
The film's release sparked major political controversy in France, with Socialists and Communists arguing that it was "counterrevolutionary" and misrepresented the French Revolution, as both sides tried to present themselves as the proper heirs of the Revolutionary tradition.
At the time, Poland's Solidarity movement was very popular in France and, with the film being directed by a Polish director, Andrzej Wajda, everything seemed right for the film to be a hit. There are elements in the film that seemed to draw an analogy between the French Revolution and Solidarity's fight against Communism. However, the Government had swung to the right by the time the film was released in January 1983. The harsh, icy portrayal of Robespierre was considered particularly objectionable and the attitude was that Wajda had denigrated the French Revolution by misrepresenting its icons.
Though Gérard Depardieu's emulation of Danton might be thought flawless, aside from stature he bears little resemblance to the actual Danton. As an infant Danton was disfigured by an angry bull and trampled by pigs; there was scarring later from a bout with smallpox. Scars or none, portraits of Danton evoke a heavier and more pugnacious Marlon Brando.
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