Film Review
Aviation-themed films became quite a popular sub-genre on both sides of the
Atlantic in the 1930s and 1940s. Jean Grémillion's
Le Ciel est à vous
(1944) and Henri Decoin's
Au grand
balcon (1949) are two well-known examples of the genre made in France,
but before these comedy star Noël-Noël wrote and starred in a lesser
known film,
Sur le plancher des vaches, which struggles to bridge
the gap between comedy and drama and is much duller than it deserves to be,
given the calibre of its cast. The film's inability to come to life
can be put down to Pierre-Jean Ducis's completely uninspired direction, which
pretty well eradicates any humour, charm or interest-value in Noël-Noël's
original screenplay and makes the film appear much longer than it is.
A director who deserves his place in obscurity, Ducis had previously helmed
the equally forgettable Fernandel vehicle
Le Cavalier Lafleur
(1934).
Noël-Noël may have been an immense star - the most popular French
comic actor of his generation - but he was as well-placed as any actor to
portray Mr Average. In
Sur le plancher des vaches, Noël-Noël
is the epitome of the Français moyen (two words that are invariably
appended to his name whenever it is uttered), a downtrodden clerk who, improbably,
becomes bitten by the flying bug. The character's love of flying has
less to do with a thirst for adventure and more to do with an infatuation
with a feisty aviatrix, played by the ever-lovely comedienne Betty Stockfeld.
Pauline Carton, René Génin and Raymond Cordy are three more
familiar faces that help to enliven this stilted comedy-drama, although the
only scenes that stick in the memory are those depicting the aviation stunts
- these were presumably what audiences most wanted to see, and in this at
least they couldn't have been disappointed. It's worth noting
that appearing in a minor role (as a flying instructor) is a young Gilles
Grangier. Noël-Noël
would remember him and gave him his first directing job on a later comedy,
Adémaï
bandit d'honneur (1943).
© James Travers 2017
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Film Synopsis
Jean Durand is a modest office clerk who is tired of being treated as an
object of ridicule by his boss and colleagues. He cannot believe his
good fortune when he wins a lottery prize, but is less heartened when he
discovers that his prize in an aeroplane. Encouraged by a daring young
aviatrix, Jeanne Couret, Jean is soon taking flying lessons in the hope of
gaining a pilot's licence. Jean soon becomes wildly infatuated with the aviatrix,
to the amusement of his friend Maurice. When Jeanne goes missing during
a flight across the Mediterranean, Jean decides to come to her rescue, but
ends up crashing in some out-of-the-way spot...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.