Père et fils (2003)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Michel Boujenah

Writers:

Edmond Bensimon (writer)
Edouard Bensimon (writer)

Release Date:

20 August 2003 (France)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot Keywords:

Hashish | Dominatrix | Montreal Quebec | Father Son Reunion | Paris France

Awards:

3 nominations

Cast

Philippe Noiret	...	Léo
Charles Berling	...	David
Bruno Putzulu	...	Max
Pascal Elbé	...	Simon
Marie Tifo	...	Mado
Geneviève Brouillette	...	Hélène
Pierre Lebeau	...	Jacques
Jacques Boudet	...	Joseph
Matthieu Boujenah	...	Julien
Céline Thiou	...	Martine
Eva Saint-Paul	...	Francine
Franck Giordanengo	...	Le motard
Nathalie Dherbey	...	L'infirmière
Joseph Malerba	...	Eric
Albert Kwan	...	Le serveur restaurant

Also Known As:

Father and Sons (International: English title) (USA) (literal English title)

Runtime:

France:95 min | Germany:97 min (Filmfest Hamburg) | Argentina:95 min

Country:

France | Canada

Language:

French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Finland:K-7 | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | Argentina:13 | Chile:14

Filming Locations:

Charlevoix Region, Québec, Canada

Company:

A.J.O.Z. Films

Movie Connections:

References Deliverance (1972)

Light-Hearted Modern French Comedy

This film has recently been issued on a DVD in France with (French) subtitles. It is about an old father who wishes to reunite his three quarrelling sons so pretends that he is gravely ill and asks them to accompany him on a final voyage to see the whales off the coast of Canada.

That is the plot of the film, but it is not therein that lies its principal interest. What captivates the spectator is the interaction of the four main characters of the film. Although the film was for the most part made in Canada ( the French-speaking part), it is essentially a French film about French people. The use of some minor Canadian characters in the film with their weird French accents gives something of an 'unusual touch' to the film but I don't think the film can be considered as Canadian/North Amercian. Canada here is just a backdrop to the relations being played out between the four main characters.

I have always loved Noiret as an actor, especially with his deep voice ( I'm very sensitive to voices) and was not disappointed by his mainly light-hearted and comic performance here. I had not heard of the other young actors except Charles Berling whom I do know, but found all their performances very good. I did appreciate the comic and light-hearted attitude of the actors. The Director, Michel Boujenah, who's first film it is, states on the DVD that he wanted the film to be light-hearted and not sad !! So this can be watched without fear of a nasty shock at the end !

I am not sure whether the film would appeal to non-francophone audiences as much of the fun Is in the dialogues rather than in the action, all of which supposed a reasonable to good grasp of the French language to pick up all the ironic comments and snide remarks !! Anyway, for my part, I spend a pleasant 90 minutes watching this and would probably watch again some time in the future !