Film Review
Of the many mainstream comedies that Guy Lefranc directed in the course
of his twenty-year long career, the ones that stand up best today are
those that were clearly modelled on popular American rom-coms of the
previous decade.
Elle et moi (1952) was arguably
Lefranc's most successful attempt at emulating the classic Hollywood
rom-com, but
Suivez-moi jeune homme
comes a close second, an enjoyable, fast moving farce that offers more
than a fleeting nod to Preston Sturges and Ernst Lubitsch. Daniel
Gélin and Dany Robin are perfectly suited to play the 'will
they/won't they' romantic leads, in what could easily be mistaken for
an updated Gallic version of the Frank Capra classic,
It Happened One Night (1934),
complete with hitchhiking scene.
Comedy legends and borderline lunatics Michel Galabru and Noël
Roquevert are on hand to help crank up the humour quotient, the former
hilarious as a Greek tycoon obsessed with netting his ideal woman, and
there's an unexpected delight when Claude Piéplu shows up (all
to briefly) at the start of his screen career. Plotwise,
Suivez-moi jeune is unlikely to win
many awards for originality, but the gags are bountiful and there's
plenty to keep us amused as Gélin and Robin fight it out on the
sunny Riviera. The best scene: Gélin, made up as a
septuagenarian, mowing passengers down on a crowded railway platform
before leaping onto a moving train à la Belmondo. Well,
it's one way to earn the respect of the younger generation...
© James Travers 2015
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Next Guy Lefranc film:
Les Malabars sont au parfum (1966)
Film Synopsis
Aristide Oranos, a wealthy ship owner, is in love with
Françoise, a shop assistant in a jeweller's shop. When the
young woman rejects him several times, Aristide becomes convinced that
she already has a man in her life and hires a private detective, Michel
Corbier, to spy on her. Unfortunately, Michel also falls in love
with Françoise...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.