She even found a woman in France who painted reproductions of actual hand-lettered documents from the village of Artigat. ''I helped make sure that the documents were right.'' ''I'd run around the library here and photo-copy scenes and costumes that I thought might help them,'' she said. Having chosen the medium of film to tell the story, Professor Davis said that she had worked hard to make it as authentic as possible. The case - which became a cause cel ebre - also inspired another contemporary account, a play, two novels and an operetta. Professor Davis first came upon the story in a contemporary account written by one of the judges at the trial, Jean de Coras, whose book went through more than five editions in the 1560's. The imposter, a crafty liar named Arnaud du Tilh, was hanged. The case went all the way to the Toulouse Parliament.Īs a panel of judges was about to acquit the man, the real Martin Guerre showed up. Then, after about three and a half years, the wife sued him, claiming he was an imposter. Eight years later, a man who seemed to be Martin showed up in the village and was accepted by his wife, Bertrande, and family. The film and book recount how Martin Guerre, an unhappy peasant, disappeared one day in the 1540's from his prosperous farm in the village of Artigat, in the French Pyrenees. ''It's such a dramatic, surprising story, so full of visual possibilities.'' ''I just thought, 'What a marvelous way to bring this story to millions of people,' '' she said.
Why did the scholar - she has taught at Princeton since 1978 and is best known for her book ''Society and Culture in Early Modern France'' - venture into the world of cinema? Only then did she decide to write the book, which was published in September by Harvard University Press. 4 at the Montgomery Center Theater in Rocky Hill, and is also playing in Morristown, Montclair and Union.Īs she scoured archives for her work on the movie, Professor Davis realized that the whole story could not be told on the screen. That day, Professor Davis became historical consultant for the film, ''Le Retour de Martin Guerre,'' which opened in this country in June and has played to large audiences in New York City ever since.
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