The documentary also takes the opportunity to present the whole remarkable story of Voltaire's death, dissection and posthumous peregrinations. It is fairly well-trodden ground, but nonetheless a televisual treat, especially since Charlier is filmed at all the relevant locations, many of which are not normally accessible to the public. Some fairly unobtrusive, talking-heads (Jennifer Ruimi, Laurence Macé, and the venerable Didier Masseau) contribute helpful comments, and dark, slightly gruesome dramatic reconstructions add to the atmosphere (though I don't see why the dying Voltaire sports that improbable white curly wig).
INTRODUCTION:
Philippe Charlier tells us that, after Voltaire's death, his corpse was autopsied and his body parts subjected to a "veritable dispersion" as though they were holy relics. A heart, an embalmed brain, and a body extricated clandestinely by night from Paris to escape the religious authorities - their incredible and farcical fate resembled Voltaire's own fiction. Charlier declares his intention to track down and investigate these individual remains, in particular the heart.
Voltaire was 83 when he died, with a catalogue of forty ailments. Charlier wants to examine the state of his health and, perhaps, uncover the true cause of his death.
