Yves Saint Laurent: L’Amour Fou (2010)

Directed by: Pierre Thoretton | 100 minutes | documentary

Fashion king Yves Saint Laurent passed away in 2008. From the very beginning of his career, Saint Laurent was assisted by Pierre Bergé, his partner in both love and business. Shortly after his death, Bergé decided to sell their entire private collection of works of art. This sale took place in February 2009 and is considered the auction of the century. The proceeds: more than €374 million. Bergé has donated most of the money to AIDS research. In the documentary ‘Yves Saint Laurent: L’Amour Fou’ Bergé is followed during the preparations for the auction of the art collection by Christie’s in Paris.

Director Pierre Thoretton interviews Pierre Bergé in the run-up to the auction in the various houses where he lived with Yves Saint Laurent. Using archive footage, photos and works of art from the collection, Bergé tells about their life together. There is a lot of attention for the career of Saint Laurent. When Christian Dior dies in 1957, Saint Laurent takes over the Dior fashion house at the age of 21. He is tasked with putting the distressed fashion house back on the map. His designs are so innovative that everyone will know his name in no time. In 1960 he was called up for military service. There he becomes depressed and as a result of a nervous breakdown he is fired from Dior. He then decides to start his own fashion house together with his partner Bergé, which is known under the initials YSL. His designs were leading and very successful from the start. With the success came the fame and money with which the art collection was purchased. But the success also had a downside, the designer was addicted to alcohol and drugs and was plagued by depression.

The documentary shows a moving picture of the life of the famous designer. The viewer gets to know the man behind the designs. Director Pierre Thoretton initially planned to make a film about the influence of the art collection on Saint Laurent fashion, but it is mainly the relationship between the two men that is central. The last ten years of his life are only briefly mentioned. It is mainly the years between 1960 and 1980 that are discussed in detail. Yves Saint Laurent’s fashion plays a relatively underexposed role, which may be a shame for the fashion lovers among us. The documentary provides a satisfying, bittersweet portrait of the French fashion designer, but above all succeeds in portraying the loving devotion of his partner Bergé.