Anthony, Anouchka and Alain-Fabien Delonhis three sons, who have been feuding with each other for years, will be in charge of organizing the funeral of the legend of the seventh art.
On Sunday, they agreed to jointly announce the actor’s death, after months of disagreements over his father’s medical care.
Star of world cinema classics such as The Leopard and The samuraiDelon was not only one of the great French leading men, but also a disciplined actor who knew how to serve all kinds of directors during the golden age of French cinema.
Confined to the solitude of his mansion, suffering from various illnesses and with political or social positions that provoked controversy, Delon had repeatedly expressed in recent years that the only thing he His wish was to be buried on his property in La Brulerie, in Douchy (central France) where he died, near his dogs..
“The administrative procedures for this have already been initiated,” Christophe Hurault, deputy prefect of Loiret, told AFP, adding that the prefecture had “given an agreement in principle.”
But the unanimous praise from all cultural and political sectors in France points to some kind of national tribute, as already happened with his great friend. Jean-Paul Belmondowho died in 2021.
His death brings to a close a whole page in the history of French cinema from the 1960s to the 1980s, a powerful and internationally envied film.
Delon has left behind most of those he loved or worked with: Jean Gabin, Lino Ventura, Romy Schneider, Italian directors Luchino Visconti either Michelangelo Antonioni.
The world bids farewell to Alain Delon
With the death of Delon and Belmondo, the last living legend of that era is Brigitte Bardot89 years old, retired from the profession for decades.
Delon leaves behind “an abysmal void that nothing and no one can fill,” the actress wrote.
As a sign that his aura continued to transcend borders, the international press devoted ample space to his death.
“Handsome and hypnotic, Alain Delon was one of the most mysterious stars in cinema”summed up the critic of the British newspaper Guardian, Peter Bradshaw.
For the German magazine Spiegel, which remembers Delon with a photo alongside Romy Schneider, one of his great loves, he was “the European James Dean”.
His other favourite country, Italy, where he spent much of his early career, also made headlines for him.
“There will never again be an actor like Delon, unique and immortal,” lamented Il Corriere della Sera, while La Stampa and La Repubblica said “Farewell to the myth of French cinema.”
The Spanish actor Antonio Banderas He was one of the first to say “goodbye.”
The American independent filmmaker Jim Jarmusch praised him on Instagram as “the gangster with the face of an angel”.
And his influence does not stop there. “He was idolized in Japan for his charm and mannerisms,” Japanese media outlet NHK recalls on its website.
In France, all the newspapers devoted their front pages on Monday to Delon. Le Figaro, like Le Parisien, praised “the last samurai”, while Libération headlined “Deep sleep” over a black and white photo of the actor, cigarette in his mouth.
Tributes multiplied on Sunday, beyond the world of culture.
Frenchwoman Mireille Mathieu paid tribute to “a monument of France”, as did President Emmanuel Macron, who chose the same words to pay tribute to an “unforgettable face” who “made the world dream”.
Fans marched in front of Delon’s property in Douchy all day Sunday to bid farewell to their star.
Source: Ambito
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
