Le Héros de la famille (2006)

Le Héros de la famille is a French film first released in 2006, directed by Thierry Klifa.  The film stars Gérard Lanvin, Catherine Deneuve, Emmanuelle Béart, Miou-Miou and Michaël Cohen.  It has also been released under the title: Family Hero.  Our overall rating for this film is: mediocre.


For many years, Gabriel Stern has managed the popular nightclub Le Perroquet Bleu in Nice.  Although close to those who work for him, he remains a mysterious and unpredictable employer.  His closest friend and collaborator is Nicky, a magician who once had a brilliant television career but who now performs in front of a dwindling audience at Gabriel’s nightclub.  After Gabriel’s death, Nicky is surprised and embittered when he learns that his lifelong friend has bequeathed the bulk of his estate, including the night club, not to him but to his two children, Simone and Alice.  Simone, a lawyer, tells his father that he has no choice but to sell Le Perroquet Bleu, instigating a bitter family feud...

Not for the first time, a glittering ensemble of some of French cinema’s finest actors are brought together for a film that in no way measures up to their collective talent, and you are left wondering if stars such as Catherine Deneuve and Emmanuelle Béart haven’t anything better to do with their time.   Thierry Klifa’s second film, after his promising debut feature Une vie à t’attendre (2004), is an uninspired and predictable affair lacking charm, psychological depth and any emotional force.  The classy musical numbers relieve the boredom marginally, particularly those in which a stunning Emmanuelle Béart shows her talent as a cabaret singer, but overall the film leaves little impression.

© filmsdefrance.com 2009

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