Film Review
Of the forty or so screen adaptations of Brandon Thomas's eternally
popular stage play
Charley's Aunt
few are as wildly exuberant as this enjoyably daft French version
featuring French comedy legend Fernand Raynaud at the height of his
powers. Although best known as a stand-up comic, Raynaud was also
a superb comic actor and appeared in around a dozen films, of which
La Marraine de Charley is arguably
his funniest. Departing slightly from Thomas's play, the film
sees Raynaud in a double role, playing both the enterprising student
Charley and his formidable benefactor, here referred to as his
godmother. Needless to say, the sight of Raynaud in drag is not
one to be missed and is one of the funniest (and possibly scariest)
things you will ever see in any French film.
La Marraine de Charley is a
remake of an earlier film of the same title, released in 1936 and
directed by Pierre Colombier, with Claude Lehmann as Charley and
Marguerite Moreno as his godmother. The 1959 version was directed
by Pierre Chevalier, who worked with Raynaud on several other comedies,
including
Fernand clochard
(1957) and Auguste
(1961). The script was by Jean Girault, who would later go on to
direct some of France's most successful film comedies, notably the
Gendarme series with Louis de
Funès.
Despite some strong competition from co-stars Jean-Pierre Cassel
(a remarkable presence at the start of his career) and Pierre Bertin,
Fernand Raynaud walks away with the film (although he does struggle a
little with the high heels) and has rarely been funnier. The
spectacle of Raynaud trying to put on a dress (legs first) is enough to
send you into hysterics. Regrettably, Chevalier's direction isn't
much to write home about and most of the gags have a habit of turning
up too late after they have been announced, but, with Raynaud milking
his drag act for all it is worth,
La
Marraine de Charley manages to hit the spot, more by accident
than by design. It's not the most inspired film adaptation of
Charley's Aunt, but it will
definitely make you laugh.
© James Travers 2015
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Film Synopsis
Charley Rivoire, a mature student in architecture at the university of
Paris, is grateful for the two-room apartment that his godmother, the
wealthy Gabrielle de la Motte, has put at his disposal.
The apartment becomes uncomfortably small when Charley's
fellow students move in with him. When Monsieur de Saint-Sevran
offers to rent his luxuriously furnished house to his godmother at a
ridiculously low price, Charley can hardly believe his good
fortune. Unfortunately, Madame de la Motte is out of the country
and has no need to take Saint-Sevran up on his offer. Charley's
supposed friends persuade him to pass himself off as his godmother so
that they can move into Saint-Sevran's stately residence. Only
then does Saint-Sevran's motive for offering his house to Madame de la
Motte become apparent. He intends marrying the old woman so that
he can help himself to her fortune...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.