Bye Bye Morons - Addio a tutti

In a million years I never would've come up with the plot of Albert Dupontel's César-winning "Adieu les cons" ("Bye Bye Morons" in English). The plot combines focuses on underage pregnancy, stressful work, and political activism. It does so without turning silly or preachy.

The viewer may have noticed that the movie is dedicated to Terry Jones and features a brief appearance of Terry Gilliam. Despite Monty Python's renown, I wouldn't have predicted a French dramedy casting or commemorating any of the members.

Anyway, it's a fine movie. Basically, it's about righting the wrongs. I'll have to see more of Dupontel's movies, and in the meantime I recommend this one.

Two characters on the edge, for different reasons, meet by chance, towards an inevitable end.

This could simultaneously be the summary plot of a romantic comedy written by Nora Ephon or a road movie written by Wim Wenders.

The result is a hybrid, written, performed and directed by Albert Dupontel, which, without ever claiming to be a work of author, the general tone is manifestly mainstream, in the rhythm, in the humor, in the glamor of the settings and characters, it does not leave to wink at the most creative universe of Monty Python, whether in the opening dedication to Terry Jones, or in Terry Gilliam's participation in a small but delicious role as a weapons salesman.

Adieu les Cons is not Monty Python, nor Nora Ephron, nor even Wim Wenders. It is Albert Dupontel, an experienced actor, director and screenwriter, who is well worth knowing, and signs a very interesting work here, on the most varied levels.

French films are a world apart -for good- and this is problably one of the very best you could watch right now. Original, imaginative and very well shot. Outstanding casting.

What a delightful touching comedy !

Great casting !

Magical mix of unlikely allies !!

Recommend viewing.

This movie is a great example of the misused talent available in the French cinema industry. Subsidies are used to produce movies with no substance.

The characters (including the police) are very caricatural and the story is very improbable, making it very hard to connect/relate to it.

After a first laugh with the attempted video, I spent the rest of the film searching for real emotions.

The main characters don't seem to have a home, don't sleep, eat or drink. No sense of time either.

Who is the movie for? Given the lack of imagination in the lines/simple personality of the characters, I'd say the primary audience would be teenagers? Then, why would you have such an inappropriate ending to trivialise a serious topic?

I watched this movie at the cinema and the disappointment was general. People were rushing out to go home.

So, this one doesn't deserve a Cesar for me, regardless of how stylised it is. A movie is a story/an experience that needs to be more meaningful than this.