Feted as a visionary but tormented genius who reshaped the silhouette of 20th century women, Yves Saint Laurent comes back to life this week in the first biopic of the man known as the "prince of fashion". The film by French actor-turned-director Jalil Lespert focuses on 20 years of the designer's life between 1956 and 1976 that saw him burst onto the fashion scene — first at Dior then at the head of his own house — and ascend to fame and fortune. It is also a love story — that of Saint Laurent and his partner Pierre Berge, whose up-and-down relationship reveals the "dark, sombre face" of a man who at times plunged into depression, drugs and alcohol, and was unfaithful. Saint Laurent, who died in 2008 aged 71, dominated the international couture scene from the swinging 1960s, revolutionising women's wardrobes with a new androgynous style that mirrored women's push for a stronger social role.
