Medieval Studies Program
1267 University of Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403-1267

Office: 541-346-4069
FAX: (541) 346-4118
midages@uoregon.edu

The Advocate (5 stars) 1994, 102 minutes.

In the fifteenth century, a common medieval practice was that of animal trials. Common domestic animals, such as cats, donkeys, and pigs, could be held accountable for breaking the law and put on trial, subject to fines, and execution like any human citizen. To make matters worse, the laws varied from parish to parish, even from town to town. Director Leslie Megahey's The Advocate is a murder mystery set in this background of legal mayhem. It is based in part on the life of a real advocate in fifteenth century France, that of Bartholomew Chassenée.

In The Advocate, the historical figure of Chassenée is transformed into a Parisian lawyer by the name of Richard Courtois (played by Colin Firth). Courtois leaves the corrupt courts of Paris in order to move among the "honest and decent" folk of the countryside. Once there, he finds himself in a world of legalized insanity, his talents being wasted on the legal defense of a pig accused of murdering a young Jewish boy. The matter would be trivial, except the accused porker in question is the property of a small gypsy family, who desperately need their pig back to have sufficient food for the winter, and Courtois finds himself strangely attracted to the exotic and beautiful gypsy dancer Samiera (Amina Annabi), who begs for his help.

It becomes clear there is more to the murder than meets the eye, and that the rural community is hiding some dark secret. A condemned witch mysteriously warns the lawyer to "Look to the boy!" The friendly local priest redirects Courtois from examining the case too closely. The local ruler, Signeur Jehan, applies pressure to Courtois to resolve the case quickly, and Courtois overhears rumors that the Signeur hunts in the forest with humans as quarry. A strange Jew monitors Courtois' movements about the town. Eventually, Courtois discovers himself that a mysterious black rider is about, one who has been kidnapping children. But who? It seems his client is a convenient scapegoat, or rather a scapepig, for the real murderer. Everywhere he stumbles into clues involving witchcraft, Catharist heresy, guild price-fixing, and corruption among the rural aristocracy, but which of these conspiracies is attached to the murders, he does not know.

It would give away too much to tell more, but the movie is chock full of devious plot-twists and medieval strangeness. Suffice it to say, the film has real humor, real tension, and real drama, both inside the courtroom and outside it. In particular, there are spectacular dream sequences in which Courtois' unconscious mind slowly puts together the pieces of the mystery, and it is entertaining to watch him squirm as Signeur's attempts to gain control over the lawyer in order to marry Courtois to the Signeur's daughter. Courtois must use all his wits to solve the mystery, and he must learn to work within the unwieldy legal system rather than against it, in order to prove his porcine client innocent and unmask the real predator preying on the children. Finally, even after the twists and turns of the mystery itself, there is a final plot twist involving the condemned witch's prophecy. Pay attention to her dying words, and note the poetic justice. This movie is an outstanding film. See it immediately!