Le Concierge (1973)
Directed by Jean Girault

Film Review

Although he is best remembered for the dozen or so films he directed with the comedy giant Louis de Funès - notably the ever-popular Gendarme films - Jean Girault put his name to many other mainstream comedies, with varying degrees of success.  Le Concierge is a middling Girault offering, not his worst film by any means but somewhat below the standard of his many de Funès collaborations, although it boasts an impressive cast and does at least have an original premise (which was supplied by another comedy legend, Darry Cowl).  Lacking the star presence of de Funès, the film was only moderately successful, attracting an audience of half a million, but this doesn't mean that it falls flat in the entertainment stakes, far from it.

This film reinvents Don Juan as a humble apartment concierge, whose irresistible charms and flair for opportunism are skilfully directed against an unsuspecting clientele of easily preyed upon tenants. The silky smooth Bernard Le Coq is ideally suited to play the eponymous role and does so with surprising comedic panache, assisted by an extraordinary ensemble that includes Jean Carmet and another habitué to Girault's oeuvre, Michel Galabru.  Le Coq delivers most of the laughs, as his seduction scenes become ever more implausible as the story progresses, but there's plenty of humour to be found elsewhere, particularly from Daniel Prévost, whose camp caricature of an avant-garde musician is hilarious in the extreme. Francis Perrin, another comic performer about to burst onto the scene, puts in a fleeting appearance at the end of the film.  Le Concierge may be somewhat uneven and tends to flag towards the end, but it stands up well alongside Jean Girault's better known films.

Film Synopsis

On graduating from university with honours, Christophe Mérignac has high hopes for his future but he is as yet unsure as to which direction to take as regards his chosen career.  Providence comes to his aid one auspicious night when he spots an attractive young woman being assaulted by a stranger.  Naturally Christophe cannot resist helping this damsel in distress and she shows her gratitude by taking him back to her apartment to repay him as she feels duty bound to do.  The following morning,  Christophe is happy to discover that the luxury apartment block where fortune has sent him as a reward for playing the Good Samaritan is in need of a new concierge.

Never one to pass up a good omen, our hero immediately applies for and is given the job, which he is certain will lead to bigger and better things in the course of time.  Sure enough, Christophe is soon reaping the rewards of this initiative as he makes himself thoroughly indispensable to  everyone in the building.  By exercising his charm and good nature he manages to turn every situation to his advantage and he ends up by marrying one of his wealthy clients.  Fidelity, however, is not one of Christophe's virtues and despite this stroke of good fortune he is soon cheating on his new wife, with results that are far from advantageous to his future prospects...