Le prénom

As you sit in front of Le Prénom, you can't help but think how many similarities it shares with Carnage (Polanski, 2011): same middle class context, almost the same setting, but with that French flavour that makes everything much tastier. Vincent is about to become father for the first time, and, during a dinner at his sister's house, he's asked about the name his wife Anna and he want to give their son. This simple, lame question sets off an evening where secrets are revealed, feelings are declared and hypocrisy is unmasked.

I think the movie, built on a very strong and witty screenplay, wouldn't have worked the same if the actors hadn't been so good, with so much remarkable chemistry between them. The cast is directed as if it were a company in a theatre: everyone has to be empathic with the others, in order to make the script work.

Better to watch it in original language, with subtitles: it's worth the risk to miss some of the dialogue.

Mix of Un Air de Famille by Klapisch and Carnage by Polanski, Le Prénom is clearly divided in two parts: the first is pure comedy oriented, whereas the second is more drama focused.

The problem is that those two parts aren't homogeneous: the beginning is very good, dynamic, the dialogues fly, the humour is really present and the viewer is quickly sucked in. Unfortunately, the more the film progresses, the more the comical aspect is left aside, and the more the movie loses interest. The script goes thought bland and uninteresting passages, and we are served a dramatic aspect that isn't the most exciting one, which is disappointing in comparison to the thundering start.

A fifteen minute cut, mostly from the second part, could have also improved the overall rhythm of the movie.

Special mention to the cast who was very good and showed a great chemistry.

J'ai adoré... Film intelligent, divertissent. Le jeu des ateurs est incroyable. À voir absolument ! 👍😁

"Le Prenom" is about a group of five middle-aged friends who are having a Moroccan dinner get-together one night. The hosts are Pierre (a literature professor) and his dutiful wife Elisabeth (nicknamed Babou). Claude is a professional trombonist who was Elisabeth's best friend. Vincent is Elisabeth's joker of a brother, whose wife Anna is pregnant with their first child.

It was the matter of naming Vincent and Anna's unborn baby boy that starts us off in this adventure of bitter wit and sharp barbs all within the confines of Pierre's apartment. From a heated argument about the name Vincent plans to give his son, their conversation devolves into more serious and painful matters about each other's secrets they have been keeping from each other all these thirty odd years they have known each other as close friends.

"Le Prenom," with its confined action and lengthy dialogues, felt like a play. The passionate cast, led by Vincent Bruel and Charles Berling, were also acting like stage actors with their over-the top, exaggerated (therefore not too realistic for film) reactions and exclamations. I found out afterwards that it was adapted by Mathieu Delaporte and Alexandre de la Patelliere, based on their 2011 stage play.

This script of this film is reminiscent of a 2008 French play by Yasmina Reza called "Gods of Carnage", made into a film called "Carnage" by Roman Polanski. That play/film had two middle-aged couple whose arguments begin from a fight between their sons to topics totally different from what they started talking about.

As with other foreign language films, I felt a lot of the humor and wit is lost in translation into the English subtitles. Especially in a very wordy screenplay like this one with practical jokes and secret revelations, so much subtleties in the use of language is expected, and I surely missed. This is already very good as I watching it, but I have a feeling French-speaking people found it even better. I will definitely watch a live English language performance of this play if there was one.

Arguing is instilled in French culture. The French practice arguing to keep their minds sharp (perhaps something lacking in our culture). Cultural relativism is not apparent in other reviews that criticize and find the the amount of arguing in the film "boring." The film is quite captivating. Classic French cleverness is very present in the script. The characters present a wonderful view into the lives of Parisians and their commitment to great wine, food and conversation. The idea of titles and the strange taboos society has on names is the deeper argument for all the audience to ponder once the film has finished. The actors in the film keep the audience engaged with a handful of stories and perspectives on family life.