[Anonymous]

Have you seen the 1983 film Danton? If so, what do you think of it? In any case, would you mind briefly evaluating Danton the man and comparing/contrasting him to Robespierre?

[Jason Jewell]

I have not seen the film, but have heard that it’s well done.

As for comparing Danton to Robespierre, I know some attempt to portray Danton as more or less of a moderate in comparison to Robespierre. However, both were Jacobins and confirmed radicals by any measure that could be considered the least bit impartial. Even the so-called moderate Girondists, whom Danton ultimately worked to suppress, were very radical by any pre-1789 standard. Danton may have been marginally less extreme than Robespierre, but I don’t see much value in trying to draw significant distinctions between the two, at least as far as their policies went.

I hope this answers your question.

[gutzmank]

The 1983 film was at the center of a political storm in France. It was produced with government support shortly after Francois Mitterand, France’s first Socialist president, came to office, and there was quite a bit of controversy over how Danton ought to be portrayed and was portrayed in the film. I recall seeing it in a theater in Austin on its initial American release, and I was quite impressed with it. Overall, it certainly was not friendly to its hero–if we can call him that.

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