La doublure

This film is hilarious. The set up is a bit unbelievable, but the actors make it work - and mostly believably. The model in the film is refreshingly genuinely nice and not a caricature of a "supermodel." The depth of the main unwitting character, the valet himself, is a bit lacking - but hey, he is charming, as is the rest of the cast. Besides, since he is lovesick, perhaps his lack of depth is at least understandable. The feel of the movie is also quite uplifting - the bad guy loses in the end, and the good guys win. The ride is just fun, and filled with twists and turns, most of which the audience gets to be in on. The only character that was TOO shallow was the valet's girlfriend - she just didn't seem to be worth all the fuss, to me. I don't understand the PG-13 rating - it is not vulgar nor is there any nudity.

I'm 50/50 on foreign films as subtitles often give me tired-head. Having said that, this film is surprisingly witty, well-paced and in the spirit of La Cage Aux Folles or Victor/Victoria - without musical numbers.

If you've seen and enjoyed the original or foreign versions of The Monster, Night on Earth or the aforementioned La Cage Aux Folles or Victor/Victoria you shouldn't be disappointed. Like most recent releases it's long on closeups and two-shots yet lacks intimacy - which is OK for comedies of the ilk. And in the final analysis, the spirit of wacky comedy is clearly presented in a way that only the French conceive.

While not the pinnacle of Veber's cinematic achievements, it's certainly no bust. By comparison, the American master of this genre, Blake Edwards, has had his fair share of hits and misses and I could easily see him directing the American version.

In a nutshell, it's a nice little date rental - cute romance with a touch of culture and a lot of humor.

Since the general plot, etc., is pretty well discussed here, I won't bore you with the details.

This movie needs to be viewed for the love of it...not to be dissected and intellectualized.

This movie is simply a playful romp. AS Daniel Autille, one of my favorite French actors, gets deeper and deeper into his rouse he gets more and more desperate. His comedic turn is a delight to watch and proves his versatility. His last movie was the incredible "Cache".

Some of the set-ups are wonderful...who cares if some have been done before...and some are fresh and all are done with glee and panache. In fact all of the actors seem to be having fun.

One great aspect of this movie is that there is character development ... several characters are forever changed, for the better, by the end of the movie.

I have no qualms about recommending this movie to friends and film buffs alike. Just go and enjoy.

I hope some Hollywood type doesn't make an American botch job of this one.

I really enjoyed The Valet. It's a sweet little film that had me grinning the whole way through. My smiles were only interrupted now and then by bursts of laughter.

Gad Elmaleh plays a valet who through pure chance is photographed with a billionaire (the always wonderful Daniel Auteuil) and his mistress, a famous supermodel. When the photo turns up in the tabloids the billionaire must convince his wife that the supermodel is really with the valet, so he gets them to live together while his wife has them shadowed by private investigators. The plan backfires on the billionaire when he finds himself consumed with jealousy at the thought of his mistress spending the night with another man, so he also sends private investigators to watch them. Meanwhile the Valet has romantic problems of his own that are complicated by the fact that all of a sudden he finds himself shacking up with the most beautiful woman in France. It's a cute and funny little romantic comedy.

On the surface, "La Doublure" (literal French translation: "The Stand-In") may seem like a standard switcheroo rom-com, but it's so much more than that. It's a classic morality play, not unlike something from Shakespeare or Molière, meticulously written and executed to deliver laughs as well as deeper messages.

You can watch it on either level. If you're in it just for laughs and some funny twists, there's plenty of them. If you sink your teeth deeper, there's a lot of clever symbolism and some nice allegories. For example, take our hero's job: a parking valet. He gets to drive all the hottest cars in the city but they're not his to keep. Just like the hot supermodel he gets temporarily paired with.

Director/writer Francis Veber is known for this sort of comedy. I don't want to label it "intelligent comedy" because there's nothing snotty or pretentious about it. Instead it's good comedy for the masses but with a clever edge. A note about Francis Veber: his standard recipe is to create an "everyman" character (who is always named François Pignon in every movie) and place him in an absurd situation that is the result of the strangeness/hypocrisy of people around him. François is always an innocent patsy, and the nuttiness just follows him wherever he goes. In that respect, it's the opposite of the Shakespearean formula where the "fool" is wise to everyone's ways and in control of the drama despite appearances. The Vebersian formula is to make the "fool" literally a fool, and that makes us connect with him & hope things turn out for the best. Another excellent example of this strategy is in Veber's film "Le dîner de cons" ("The Dinner Game") which is the film that introduced me to the genius of Francis Veber.

If you watch the DVD extras, you'll see how meticulous Veber was in making this film. Every word was carefully scripted, and the delivery was hammered down to a science. You'd never guess it sitting in the audience's seat because it comes across so smooth and easygoing. But make no mistake, everything was carefully planned. There is nothing sloppy about this, or any other film of Francis Veber.

The result is 90 minutes of pinpoint comedic timing, great performances from every actor (including the minor roles), and a fun experience as if you've seen a well produced stage performance.

If you like classy comedies with picture-perfect accuracy, movies like Frank Oz's "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" and "Death at a Funeral" or Blake Edwards' "Breakfast at Tiffany's", I think you'll really like this. Another one, also starring the excellent Gad Elmaleh, is "Priceless" (the modern French version of "Breakfast at Tiffany's"). All of these comedies are in a class by themselves and well worth the price of admission.