Delusions of Grandeur (Büyük Soytarı)

Delusions of Grandeur (French: La Folie des grandeurs) is a 1971 historical comedy directed by Gérard Oury, made as a co-production between France, Italy, Spain and West Germany. Very loosely adapted from Victor Hugo's play Ruy Blas, it stars Louis de Funès and Yves Montand.

The action unfolds in 17th-century Spain. Don Salluste, the king's grasping and two-faced Minister of Finance, falls from favour and is banished from court by the Queen. Obsessed with revenge and desperate to reclaim his office and riches, he turns to his former valet Blaze: since the young man is helplessly in love with the sovereign, Salluste dresses him up as a nobleman and smuggles him into the palace, scheming to entangle the Queen in scandal.

Oury conceived the project in 1960 while acting in the play at the Comédie-Française, and the triumphs of Le Corniaud and La Grande Vadrouille made it possible. Bourvil was meant to play Blaze, but his death in September 1970, just before shooting, led Oury to cast Yves Montand on Simone Signoret's advice. Filmed in Spain and France, including the Alhambra palace in Granada, the picture opened in December 1971, sold over five million tickets in France and grew into a beloved classic through television reruns.