Comedy has many faces (verbal, farcical, deadpan, regressive, good- natured, satiric, nonsensical and more..., certain forms of humor overlapping each other in the same work) and I love them all. But I need to recognize I have a soft spot for a very special kind of "make'em laugh" movies, those engineered by Tati, Etaix, Suleiman, Iosseliani and their likes, among whom Abel & Gordon, the co-directors, co-writers, co- producers and co-stars of "Lost in Paris".
Like the former mentioned, the Belgian clown and his Canadian-born partner (Dominique Abel & Fiona Gordon have been partners since the 1980s) are not content to tread the usual paths of "funny movies", they manage on the contrary to create an offbeat universe of their own which they inhabit in a highly unusual way. Whether in "L'Iceberg", "Rumba", "The Fairy" or the present "Lost in Paris", they form an improbable couple, each - and in their own way - out of synch with their physical and social environment. In their last opus, Dominique Abel is Dom, a happy-go-lucky homeless guy who has pitched his tent on an artificial island in the middle of the River Seine. A distant cousin of Chaplin's eternal tramp, Dom equates poverty with liberty: he eats exclusively the food of the nearby luxury restaurant (yes, picked up from its garbage cans, but still!), he smokes the best cigarette brands (okay, just butts gathered from the sidewalk, but still!), the lot. And as is the case for Charlie, poverty does not make him an angel : although never rotten to the core, Dom can be selfish, disrespectful or unpleasant. As for Fiona Gordon, she plays an ageless Canadian librarian from the Far North (where it is not recommended to open doors to the outside, the object of two hilarious gags). After landing in Paris pack on back, events beyond her control soon cause her to be stranded alone in the big city. The helpless uptight spinster will of course be taken care of by Dom, but, as can be guessed, in a very singular manner. Such an odd pairing cannot but generate lots of funny unexpected situations of which the characters get out through gags of all kinds, mainly sight or poetical comic effects.
An excellent additional idea makes "Lost in Paris" even better than Abel & Gordon's first three efforts, namely the choice of Emmanuelle Riva, the famous actress ("Hiroshima mon amour", "Thérèse Desqueyroux", "Amour"), as Fiona's aunt. Known for her grave, intellectual, dramatic roles, Riva was also, unnoticed by those who did not mix with her in real life, a very cheerful person who hated taking herself too seriously. Who could then play eccentric old Martha better than her? The answer is obvious : nobody else..., but someone had to think of it! Also noteworthy is the participation of Pierre Richard, as Riva's old flame and dance partner. They have a delicious scene together where, sitting on a bench in a cemetery, they merrily allow their legs and feet to follow in step with a happy music of their golden years.
If you have nothing against imagination, fantasy and unusual gags (which I made a point of not describing not to spoil your pleasure of discovering them), this charming extravaganza should normally delight you as much as it did me. It is at least the worst thing I wish for you.
