Deuxième vie (2000) - film review

Vincent, a 30 year-old misfit, is unable to decide what to do with his life.  Should he marry his girlfriend Laurie and take over his father’s shop?  The decision is made for him when he crashes his car into a roadside display column.  Regaining consciousness, he finds he that has aged 16 years, is married to a shop assistant he only met the day before, has two children and, most surprisingly, is the chairman of a hugely successful recycling corporation.  Vincent discovers that for the past sixteen years he has abandoned all his moral principles and has dealt ruthlessly with his friends and employees.  Unable to accept this new life, he makes a desperate attempt to rewind history and return to his previous life...

Despite being targeted a little too obvious at a juvenile audience, Patrick Braoudé’s Deuxième vie is overall a fairly entertaining comedy with robust comic performances and a totally warped plot (the latter probably being its strongest selling point).   In spite of the fact that the plot makes no real sense whatever (thanks largely to a rather botched ending), the constant stream of over-the-top comic situations – however ludicrous - keeps the audience amused.   Patrick Braoudé’s portrayal of Vincent has some of the manic energy of Louis de Funès’ performances but also a touch of humanity – making an above average contribution to a slightly sub-average comic film.

© James Travers 2002

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