Marsupilami

Going in, I did not expect too much from this comedy - I'm a fan of Franquin's work and of the Marsupilami, and so I'm basically willing to give everything containing the speckled longtail at least a try, even if I had the impression this was more of a cash-grab than a homage.

So, speaking as Marsupilamist - yep, the movie delivers, but, for my taste, there should have been even more scenes with the M. Jamel Debbouze and Alain Chabat are not bad at comedy (Debbouze is better here), but the M. stole every scene it was in. While one can argue if the CGI creation did justice to Franquin's style - it seemed a bit too fluffy - I can't deny that they hit many a sweet spot here, and some of the tail gags were really nice. I also appreciated the inclusion of lady M. and the nest, "Le nid des Marsupilamis" was and is my favourite M. comic.

Apart from the M.s, the comedy suffers from uneven pacing and atmosphere. Many gags are announced from a mile away, and for readers of Franquin's works, some plot developments were too obvious. On the other hand, there were some really nice gags, and also some creative cinematography and visual gags. The whole prophecy scene was absolutely hilarious, one of the funniest scenes in recent comedies and a perfect spoof of an often misused plot device. The Celine Dion gags were cool at first, but the musical number went on for too long. And the villain was very weak; little tension here - on the other hand, this makes it safe to watch with children, no frightening scenes.

Overall, a so-so comedy which is elevated above mediocre by the inclusion of the Marsupilami.

Making a Marsupilami movie without Spirou and Fantasio is like Laurel without Hardy, or Huey without Dewey and Louie. This movie was obviously not a low budget one, so why on earth did they leave out the central characters from the Marsupilami comic books?

Pictures, images, make up are great but I really don't like the actors or even the digital representation of Marsupilami. The poor thing didn't deserve Alain Chabat or even worse with Jamel Debbouze. This is unfaithful for all Franquin's work to get such a nice little animal being screwed by these actors and producers. I appreciate the second roles like Patrick Timsit, Aïssa Maïga, Lambert Wilson or Liya Kebede. Lambert Wilson imitating Céline Dion is the only one great moment with this "something" of Freddy Mercury. Géraldine Nakache is also truly insupportable in this movie, it seems she needs to get some actor's comedy lessons. As for the humor Chabat or Debbouze, you will remain on their traditional not even french jokes, old and stale light far away from the so funny original dialog of Franquin.

As with all comic adaptations to live action, there has to be made some sacrifices. I was pleasantly surprised to see how little they changed the Marsupilami. He is cute, funny and he is just like I would imagine the little fellow in real life. The story does not resemble anything really from the comics. Some new characters find the marsupilami. I would have loved to see Spirou and fantasio finding him, but I guess that would be too much to ask for. But then again people would bicker about them instead. All in all one of the better adaptations from comic to screen in recent years. It is funny, cute, adventurous and visually exciting.

I was curious after seeing the previews and there I sat as the theatre went dark and the show started on screen, thinking to myself "I hope this does not suck". I was very happy to see that not only had I not been fooled by the previews, but they actually represented the movie quite well.

I laughed, I giggled and then I laughed and laughed again. If you go in expecting a great movie: this is not what it is! This is a beautiful light hearted comedy just like the comic strip was. True to its origins.

I left the theatre feeling the same way I felt when I finished one of the comic strips: happy and content.

@Alain Chabat: bravo! et merci pour tous ces rires. (which translates to "thanks for all the laughs")