If you want to see what comedy should be, instead of the gross-out humor passed off as comedy in movies like Austin Powers, see this film. This forgotten gem stars a very young Gérard Depardieu as a
detective hired to find the missing daughter of a business. It is shot in the French tradition of visual comedy, and is very, very funny.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS:
Gérard's character, a no-nonsense detective who does not believe in superstitions or "luck", has been teamed with a hapless man whose life seems to disprove the notion that bad luck does not exist. The missing girl also has had a life of extraordinary mishaps, and her father believes that this poor schmuck will be like a guide dog leading Depardieu straight to her. Depardieu's mission becomes more and more simply trying to keep this poor shmoe alive as he searches for the businessman's daughter, and continues to disbelieve his claims of bad luck; until it starts to rub off on him. By the end of the film, he is a superstitious nervous wreck, and it is fun to see this handsome leading man developing a nervous tic and believing the smallest occurrences are "a sign" that something bad is about to happen.
A long stream of unpredictable and inventive incidents occur throughout the movie that would convince anyone that carrying a lucky charm is not such a bad idea after all. The end is a masterpiece of French visual humor. If you like Depardieu, check this out sometime. There are worse ways (and movies) to spend your evening.
By the way, Martin Short and Danny Glover remade this movie a few years ago, and it was not a tenth as funny as the original; proving that American screenwriters need to smarten up their writing.
Seven stars for me.
detective hired to find the missing daughter of a business. It is shot in the French tradition of visual comedy, and is very, very funny.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS:
Gérard's character, a no-nonsense detective who does not believe in superstitions or "luck", has been teamed with a hapless man whose life seems to disprove the notion that bad luck does not exist. The missing girl also has had a life of extraordinary mishaps, and her father believes that this poor schmuck will be like a guide dog leading Depardieu straight to her. Depardieu's mission becomes more and more simply trying to keep this poor shmoe alive as he searches for the businessman's daughter, and continues to disbelieve his claims of bad luck; until it starts to rub off on him. By the end of the film, he is a superstitious nervous wreck, and it is fun to see this handsome leading man developing a nervous tic and believing the smallest occurrences are "a sign" that something bad is about to happen.
A long stream of unpredictable and inventive incidents occur throughout the movie that would convince anyone that carrying a lucky charm is not such a bad idea after all. The end is a masterpiece of French visual humor. If you like Depardieu, check this out sometime. There are worse ways (and movies) to spend your evening.
By the way, Martin Short and Danny Glover remade this movie a few years ago, and it was not a tenth as funny as the original; proving that American screenwriters need to smarten up their writing.
Seven stars for me.