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Jean-Philippe
2006 Comedy / Fantasy
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Credits
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Director: Laurent Tuel
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Script: Laurent Tuel, Christophe Turpin
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Photo: Denis Rouden
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Music: André Manoukian
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Cast: Fabrice Luchini (Fabrice),
Johnny Hallyday (Jean-Philippe),
Guilaine Londez (Babette),
Élodie Bollée (Laura),
Olivier Guéritée (Laurent),
Antoine Duléry (Chris Summer),
Caroline Cellier (Caroline),
Barbara Schulz (Gabrielle),
Jackie Berroyer (Le professeur de physique),
Jean-Claude Camus (Himself),
Christine Paolini (Édith),
Antoine Stip (Denis Loman),
Benoît Poelvoorde (Bernard Frédéric)
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Country: France
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Language: French
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Runtime: 90 min
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Summary
Fabrice is the world’s biggest Johnny Hallyday fan. For him, a
world without France’s biggest rock legend would be a world utterly
devoid of meaning. Imagine then his horror when, one day, he
wakes up to find himself in a world where no one has ever heard the
name Johnny Hallyday. Incredible! There can only be one
explanation. When he was knocked unconscious by one of his
neighbours (one of the hazards of being a Johnny Hallyday fan),
Fabrice's conscious mind was catapulted into a parallel universe in
which, for some reason, the singer failed to make a name for
himself. Intrigued, Fabrice tracks down his idol and finds that,
in this alternative reality, he is the owner of a bowling club,
Jean-Philippe Smet (Hallyday’s real name). Having inveigled
himself into Jean-Philippe’s confidence, Fabrice learns that he once
had ambitions to make a career as a singer, but was prevented from
doing so by a tragic combination of circumstances. Realising that
Jean-Philippe still has the talent and enthusiasm to make a name for
himself, Fabrice persuades him to try for a second shot at stardom...
Review
Johnny Hallyday and Fabrice Luchini may not be an obvious casting
combination - the words chalk and
Camembert spring readily to mind - but they perform surprisingly
well together in this totally unhinged French comedy. Luchini has
a reputation as one of France’s most intellectual actors, more likely
to be quoting Baudelaire than tapping his feet to a Johnny Hallyday
number, but somehow he manages to convince us he is Hallyday’s number
one fan. Although he initially had grave reservations about
playing himself in this film, Johnny Hallyday also manages to impress,
even if his performance lacks the gravitas and depth that he previously
brought to Patrice Leconte’s L’Homme du train (2002).
Jean-Philippe, the third
full-length film from director Laurent Tuel, is far more lightweight
and frivolous than it deserves to be. What has the potential to
be quite a serious film - a satire on the arbitrary nature of stardom or
a critique on our increasingly celebrity-obsessed culture - is really little more than a
fantasy indulgence for Johnny Hallyday fans. After a promising
beginning, the film rapidly runs out of steam and, in the second half,
it looks like the plot has managed to get itself run over and has ended
up on a life-support machine. The best jokes are all used up in
the first thirty minutes and the only thing left to sustain the film to
its end is the enjoyable rapport between Luchini and Hallyday.
It’s by no means a great film, but it does have some entertainment
value - watch out for Benoît Poelvoorde in a cheeky cameo reprise of his
Claude François look-alike from Podium
(2004) - although the ones who will most appreciate it will be
the Johnny Hallyday fans, of which there are legion.
© James Travers 2008
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