La soupe aux choux

There's a little magic in this film I'll have to add a little sentimental note here: This movie reminds me of good and bad childhood memories. The good being, that (like many Germans of my generation), I grew up with the Louis de Funes comedies so, yes, I was laughing very hard when I saw this film for the first time. The bad memories: a few days after having seen it first, I heard the de Funes had passed away and this may have been the only time in my life when I had tears rolling down my cheeks after hearing about the passing of an actor (this was before the time when everybody was racing to put a random, make-myself-feel-better "RIP" on Facebook, whenever a celebrity kicks the bucket).

In many ways, his second-to-last film was one of the most unusual de-Funes-Films. For one, the viewer can intrinsically tell, that De Funes was a very sick man; somebody who's at the end of his road, yet still summoning up his strength to give us the usual over-the-top, hyper-ventilating performance for which he was known and loved. Despite this being a "typical" de-Funes-Film, there are very strong, melancholic moments (especially those involving farmer Claude and his resurrected wife Franchine or the when Claude is reminiscing about past days), which was very rare for the typical de-Funes-film. What was also very atypical was the electro-sound-music that at times reminds of Jean-Michel Jarre. Some people have complained that the soundtrack wasn't fitting. Matter of personal taste really, but I dare you to look up the title-song on YouTube and not have the tune, be it the original or one of the many covers, stuck in the back of your head for a long time to come.

In essence, all slapstick and de Funes hyper-conundrum aside, it is a movie about people longing for simpler, "down to earth" (paradoxically) times, when you could still enjoy the starlit, countryside-sky with a friend, getting drunk on wine and Pastis (and, yes, not to mention the fart-tournaments between de Funes and Carmet, which goes beyond the contemporary "laugh because somebody farted"-joke). One of the films highlights is the scene where de Funes introduces his alien friend into the "art" of eating his homemade cabbage soup – watch it and tell me honestly to the face that it doesn't make you long for a bowl and a piece of bread, whether you like cabbage or not. Is this movie vulgar? Sure thing it is. Dishonest? Quiet the opposite. Makes one almost feel a little guilty writing this over the internet. Sure, those times aren't coming back, but that's what movies are for, no? One can honestly say: they don't make films like this anymore. I tend to ignore the last De-Funes-film ("Le gendarme et les gendarmettes"), thinking of "La Soup aux choux" as the final farewell from this master-comedian, as if to say: hey, no matter how tough things get, face them with a mischievous grin; what comes will come, but it will come more smoothly with a glass of Pastis and a bowl of home-made cabbage soup.

Mind you: this is by no means an objective review but I personally give it 9 out of 10.

I've read some of the comments before and it surprises me that people really try comparing this movie to others and expecting from it a classic approach to comedy or sci-fi or even drama. I have the feeling that you cannot judge this movie using the same common patterns because it simply is different. I don't think that producers really wanted this movie to be rushed to cinema or trying to manage making it within a tight budget. Well, it is a small budget movie, maybe, but it didn't require too much funds. You don't need a huge budget to do something really excellent. This movie is a completely new approach to any of the above mentioned genres. And, as lnt-k said just before me, it is above all a wonderful ode to friendship. That's all that matters here. And the actors are magnificent. Louis de Funes, may God rest him in peace, is perfect in this movie, even if the critics were not generous with the movie. I don't need critics to really enjoy a performance like this. Each time I watch it again, I love it more and more. 10 out of 10 from me.

This was Mr de Funès on one of his last movies. Even if the health was not all there, he still had the touch and wacky ways of making us laugh. It had a moral, not to make fun at you elders, even if they are living in the past manners. You need to be open minded and you must be a fan of Mr de Funès to really appriciate his style of humour.

This comedy is a lot different from most other de Funès comedies in that it's very straightforward, there are few misunderstandings or complications, there's little of the choleric de Funès we know. Instead, at the heart of this film, there are two dotards leading their simple day-to-day lives and eating cabbage soup while waiting for their demise. Their quiet life is only endangered by the expanding city in the background.

When they unintentionally catch the attention of a cabbage-hungry alien, excitement ensues, friendships get adjusted, and of course there's a happy "ending". What makes this very simple story so fun to watch are the three main actors, they're so adorable you could watch them an hour longer without ever getting bored I think.

"La soupe aux choux" is more than all things, the story of the sincere friendship between two old men. Besides and in spite of rough discussions between them, this friendship remains complete and always sincere. It's necessary to precise that these old men are not farmers, but peasants, one was a well-sinker, the other a maker of sabots. It's also a mistake to believe that peasants are some resistant to change; this kind of mentality comes from old age, and it's true for everybody.

The beauty of that film comes before all from the greay quality of the actors and of their interpretation. And it's true not only for Louis de Funès, but also for Jean Carmet and Jacques Villeret. It's surely because of the quality of the direction of Jean Girauld, on the one hand and the dragging of the quality of play of that tremendous actor who was Louis de Funès on the other hand.

I have seen that film about fifty times at least, and I feel the need to see it again about three to four times a year. Each time I like it and never find it vulgar, because it's necessary to be highter than the apparent vulgarity of certain scenes. Never forget that everyone can, at a time in his life do some scenes like these, and we should not feel ashamed to do that, it's all and completely human. It's precisely what the film is, very human, and it explains the attachment we have for it. Even if the film is a little budget one, it's one of the best of that great actor who was Louis de Funès.