Sta' zitto... non rompere

I have just returned from the cinema with a burst of energy!

Without doubt, this is THE funniest movie that I have ever seen in my life...be it in French or English. Francis Veber has produced a film that not only equals his earlier works, Le Placard (The Closet - 2001) and Le Diner de Cons (The Dinner Game - 1998), but surpasses them by miles. The entire cinema was rocking with laughter.

And without spoiling the comedy by disclosing some hillarious punchlines, I recommend this film to all cinema-goers, be they French- or English-speakers.

Do yourself a favour... GO AND SEE IT!

10/10.

I watched this movie accidentally (other theatres were closed during the Easter) but it turned out to be my best choice! I laughed throughout the movie. Gérard Depardieu is giving his best, and so is Jean Reno. The plot is simple, but enough to make you laugh. There are fast changing scenes but that's ok, in fact the director skips the non-funny parts this way :) Only flaw, some violence scenes that could be avoided (gunshots and wounds).

A must-see.

9/10

Veber is one of the rare French cineasts who manages to make people laugh the world over ( quite a feat ). He has directed and scripted many films over the years which have given hours of pleasure and laughs to millions. This is because he has found the secret of universal humour which appeals to the vast majority of people, whatever their origins. This film is in keeping with his standards. A little weak during the last half hour ( unlike "Le Placard" ) the film nevertheless maintains the spectator amused for most of its length. Many of Veber's films are about two central characters who are very opposed to each other but who nevertheless remain together. Some may criticize this idea for its lack of novelty but the hard fact it that people like it, so we can say that Veber is a cineast for the vast public and not for his own particular idiosyncrasies. In this film, Depardieu plays the "weaker" person ( in previous films it was Pierre Richard, Daniel Auteuil or Jacques Villeret ) and Depardieu played the "tougher" character ( Les COmpères, La Chèvre, Les Fugitifs and to a certain extent Le Placard, though he ends up weakened ). The "Tough" character in this film is played by Jean Reno. The plot is not as good as that of Le Placard but Depardieu's acting of the part of "Quentin from Montargis" is superb and is enough to carry the film on its own, plot failings aside. I predict that the film should have an international success but perhaps slightly less than that of Le Placard. But one does laugh loud and it would certainly be a shame to miss it !!

Francis Veber has been known for his ability to construct extremely entertaining films. Most of his films are built in the same way, very classical. This mix includes 2 main characters, who basically shouldn't have anything to do with each other but who due to circumstances get together. Then you add a couple of truculent second roles and a series of inevitable clashes between those two. This structure was used among others in "La Chèvre (The Goat) 1981", starring Pierre Richard and Gerard Depardieu. An interesting point about Depardieu is that while he played the tough guy in The Goat, he got the opposite role, the stupid, nice guy in "Tais-toi (Ruby & Quentin)". Needless to say he is evenly amazing in both, even more as the stupid character where he brings such a pure, simple sense of humanity that you can't feel sympathy for him. Both films deserves their place in an anthology of french humour. Francis Veber likes those -a little bit simple- guys because they offer a lot of potential for comic situations. And while you laugh at these naive character, it's never aimed to make fool of them. Their humanity always eventually prevail and even the tough guy, the one who just wanted to get rid of them at the beginning of the film, finally likes them. In their simplicity, they saw or did things a tough guy would never do, but in a certain unlikely way, they helped. So Tais-toi is a skillfully crafted piece of pure enjoyment, I would even say a master work in the comedy category. No dead moments, every single line of the script is there for a single purpose: to entertain us without appealing to our worst instincts. On the contrary.

Great to see that Francis Veber, the natural heir to Billy Wilder, is still alive and well and turning out crowd-pleasers like this. Truffaut will be turning in his grave - I hope - to know that fifty years on from his vitriol-fuelled attack, 'a certain tendency ...' on PROFESSIONAL CRAFTSMANSHIP, filmmakers, and FRENCH filmmakers at that, have not abandoned, as he urged, strong stories, sound directing, and star performances. Here we have a Depardieu a good 30 pounds lighter than of yore and looking younger with it, playing the village idiot to a fare-thee-well against Jean Reno's strong silent type. Compared to Depardieu, who never stops talking (tais-toi translates literally to 'shut up') Reno's words are as carefully measured as tea-bags in Tel Aviv. Only see this movie if you're into verbal wit laced with sight gags and thick-ear confrontations involving a three-way split between Depardieu/Reno, the flics and a team of semi-hard men. Not quite Veber's best but still a respectable 8/10.