His extraordinary reign from 1643 to 1715 brought the French monarchy to its zenith and marks the great classical age of French culture. But who was Louis XIV' Roberto Rossellini directs this historical epic about the nobleman's ascent to power in France after the death of his powerful advisor, Cardinal Mazarin. To achieve this political autonomy, Louis faces off with his mother and the court nobles, all of whom assumed that Mazarin's death would give them more power. While there's the temptation to aggrandize his subject, Rossellini's film brings Louis XIV down to human scale while still producing a majestic, lavish, and meticulously detailed historical work.