L'apparenza inganna

Anti-discrimination laws are given a tweaking in this light, amusing French comedy. Auteuil plays an unassuming, rather colorless, 20-year employee of a condom factory. When, one day, he is told that he will be let go due to corporate downsizing, he is suicidally despondent. However, a caring neighbor (Aumont) devises a scheme that will possibly save Auteuil's job. He decides to "out" Auteuil as gay so that the dismissal will look like discrimination, thus panicking the company into keeping him on staff. This act sets into motion a number of comical complications, much of which involve the company macho man/bully (Depardieu) and Auteuil's boss Laroque. The film is pretty superficial and doesn't really delve into all the ramifications of it's storyline situation, but it does provide some easy laughs and some strong performances throughout. Auteuil is properly average, yet eventually ingratiating. Depardieu shows why he's one of France's top actors with a right-on, finely nuanced portrayal. His is probably one of the most complicated characters in the film and he handles it well. Laroque is an attractive and solid presence as well. Aside from a host of good actors, the film also boasts a gorgeous production design. All of the costumes, sets and color schemes come together to create a distinctive and pleasing look. The plot is almost paper thin and characters don't often act as real people would, but this is a farce and, as such, it delivers some amusement and interest. One disconcerting thing is the level of cruelty in some cases. One character is savagely beaten and another has his life virtually destroyed all in the name of "fun". This could be due to a different perspective between a U.S. viewpoint and a French one. It tarnishes the goodwill and fun of the film, but only slightly. Mostly, it is a pretty and frothy concoction (complete with one of the most adorable kittens ever seen on screen) that shouldn't offend or upset any of it's target audience.

A great film; witty and original. From the writer/director of 'Le Dîner de cons/The Dinner Game.'

The main reason i'm posting this however is as a warning to anyone who is thinking about watching the English over-dub; you'll be watching a different film if you do.

i had no idea what to expect from this film when my friend dragged me to see it, saying that it had been a huge success in france when she was living there. it started out well enough but i thought it was just going to be about how "funny" it is that this guy who isnt gay pretends he is....

however, the film is self- referential enough that it turns on itself and makes fun of all the prejudices and hangups that we all carry around with us. it is a funny, unpretentious film and for that, well worth seeing. the main actor is excellent.

Anyone who dismisses foreign films as too abstract or intellectual should see this one; it functions no differently than any American comedy. (By American comedy, I'm speaking of movies like the better Coen Brothers or Woody Allen comedies and not mass-produced garbage like "White Chicks".) Many times I completely forgot it was in French and that I was reading subtitles.

Daniel Auteuil is great in this charming film. His sad-sack loser is reminiscent of William H. Macy's most famous roles, or perhaps Jack Lemmon in "The Apartment".

Everything goes wrong for François Mignon. Neither his wife, who left him two years before, nor his teenage son will have anything to do with him. He is ignored at work, and finds out through the grapevine that he has been fired.

His next-door neighbor talks him out of suicide and comes up with a plan to save his job: if Mignon pretends to be gay, the company will not want to look homophobic by firing him.

This plan works perfectly, and Mignon is thrown into a number of increasingly ridiculous situations, now that he is reputed to be gay.

The film wraps up quickly and ties together almost too neatly, but the ending fits the fast paced comic style of everything before it. Overall, this is an entertaining and heartwarming film.

English: "The Closet"

This reminded me in some ways of M. Hulot (Le Vacance de M. Hulot, the greatest comedy I've ever seen), in others of some of the best of the Alec Guiness comedies. Not for style but for quality. It's at their level.

There were fine performances by all the main characters but I was fascinated by the unfolding of the plot. All the pieces fit together so intricately and well and so few liberties were taken of normal human reactions -- almost everything was within comfortable bonds of believability. Well, there were a couple of minor stretches -- the catalyzing role of a sexual encounter in finally transforming M. Pignon's personality was one, but wouldn't that be quaintly Gallic? And the transformation of his son was another, but then -- teenagers can sometimes be unpredictable, can't they? And it had only one broad sterotype, Mr. Santini (Gerard Depardieu). I left the theater amazed at how well the various facets of the plot fit so well together that it reminded me then of a Chinese wood block puzzle; now, a week later, that still seems most fitting.

This is _not_ a movie about being gay; that's only the gas that fuels the car that takes the people on that trip. It _is_ an observant, droll film about office politics and the way people's views of others can be distorted by labels. I'm sure -- within a few years -- this will be considered a classic and deservedly so.