Top 5 Comic Duos

French audiences love buddy movies that bring together an incongruous pair: one guy tough and moody, the other one clumsy and lovable. No wonder three of the top four French box office hits are included in this list…

 

LOUIS DE FUNES AND BOURVIL

La Grande Vadrouille (Don’t Look Now…We’re Being Shot At!), Gérard Oury, 1966

This World War II comic cult movie has long been France’s biggest screen success—and probably remains the film most often shown on TV. La Grande Vadrouille begins with an English crew being parachuted over Paris after German flak has destroyed their plane. They are hidden by Augustin Bouvet, a timid house painter (Bourvil) and Stanislas Lefort, a grumpy conductor of the Opéra de Paris (de Funès). These two very different men are soon involved in a perilous, yet hilarious, journey through German-occupied France… Two years after Le Corniaud, Bourvil and De Funès proved once again their marvelous chemistry in this classic comedy, with memorable lines including the infamous: “Comment ça, merde alors? But alors, you are French?” (Did you say merde alors? But then you’re French?)

GERARD DEPARDIEU AND PIERRE RICHARD

La Chèvre (Knock on Wood), Francis Veber, 1981

Marie, a businessman’s unlucky young daughter, is kidnapped while in Mexico. Sent to look for her, detective Campana (Depardieu) is unable to find any evidence after 42 days of searching. But a psychologist suggests a new plan: launch the investigation again, this time with Perrin (Richard), an accountant who’s as accident-prone as the kidnap victim, to follow in the girl’s footsteps… The first of three films with this classic duo, La Chèvre remains the best of the bunch. Pierre Richard’s character is a terribly funny idiot, unaware of his bad luck, and the source of multiple gags. But Depardieu’s exasperation and facial expressions really make the film, offering one of his best performances ever. Special kudos for the ending in the jungle, a true comic masterpiece!

CHRISTIAN CLAVIER AND JEAN RENO

Les Visiteurs (The Visitors), Jean-Marie Poiré, 1993

This highly popular flick was seen by almost 14 million people on its initial release. The story begins in the 12th century: Godefroy de Papincourt, comte de Montmirail (Reno) accidentally kills the father of his beloved Frénégonde. To repair this mistake, he is supposedly sent back in time with his servant Jacquouille la Fripouille (Clavier), but ends up in 1992. Adrift in the modern world, the two medieval characters cause repeated havoc before finding their way back to their own era. Full of culture-shock comedy, Les Visiteurs might not age as well as Les Bronzés (the benchmark dingbat beach comedy series), but it remains a highly watchable movie. Plus, it showcased the comic talents of screenwriter/actor Christian Clavier and launched numerous fun expressions. Okayyyyyy?

JACQUES VILLERET AND THIERRY LHERMITTE

Le Dîner de Cons (The Dinner Game), Francis Veber, 1998

Pierre Brochant (Lhermitte) is a wealthy publisher who organizes a weekly “idiots’ dinner” with his friends: every guest must bring the dumbest person possible in order to ridicule him. One night Pierre invites François Pignon (Villeret), an accountant whose hobby is building large models out of matchsticks. But Pierre’s sudden attack of lumbago changes their plans… Fast-paced despite a single location, Le Dîner de Cons is cruel and malicious, with clever situations and dialogue. But the movie’s main assets remain the two leading actors: Lhermitte plays a terrific hypocrite, while Villeret entirely deserved the César he won for his role as a catastrophically naïve “idiot”.  A real delight!

KAD MERAD AND DANY BOON

Bienvenue Chez les Ch’tis (Welcome to the Sticks), Dany Boon, 2008

Manager of a postal office in Provence, Philippe (Merad) is transferred for two years to Bergues, a small town in northern France. Leaving his wife and child behind, he is at first terrified by this supposedly rainy and cold region, inhabited by hard-drinking rednecks, called “Ch’tis” after the name of the local patois they speak. But he soon changes his mind after meeting his coworker, the overfriendly Antoine (Boon)… How did this low-budget movie become the biggest French movie box office success ever? Besides a good laugh, Bienvenue Chez les Ch’tis offers a genuine depiction of northern France and its simple people. Dany Boon, who was born in the region, delivers a strong performance as an alcoholic postman, torn between his protective mother and his pretty girlfriend.

TIED FOR SIXTH

Le Petit Monde de Don Camillo,Julien Duvivier, 1952 (Fernandel and Gino Cervi)

L’Emmerdeur (A Pain in the A…), Edouard Molinaro, 1973 (Lino Ventura and Jacques Brel)

La Cage aux Folles, Edouard Molinaro, 1978 (Michel Serrault and Ugo Tognazzi)

Pour 100 Briques t’as Plus Rien (For 200 Grand, You Get Nothing Now), Edouard Molinaro, 1982 (Daniel Auteuil and Gérard Jugnot)

Marche à l’Ombre, Michel Blanc, 1984 (Gérard Lanvin and Michel Blanc)

Taxi, Gérard Pirès, 1998 (Samy Naceri and Frédéric Diefenthal)

 

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Originally published in the June 2010 issue of France Today