Stephen Williams

This review is part of our coverage of the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival. The Pitch: You have heard of Mozart, Beethoven, and countless other European composers that helped shape music as we know it. However, it’s likely that you have never heard of Joseph Bologne, known professionally as Chevalier de Saint-Georges, whose work was largely destroyed when slavery was reinstated throughout France in 1802. It is an absolute shame, but thankfully, what has been preserved has been rediscovered over the years, establishing him as the first Black composer of the classical eras. Now, his story, or at least some of it, has been adapted for the screen thanks to director Stephen Williams and screenwriter Stefani Robinson. Chevalier shows Bologne, played by Luce breakout Kelvin Harrison Jr.,...