In the grand tradition of "Volpone" , a wealthy banker pretends he is deaf to know what the "others " think about him.
let's not forget ,that: The Esway/Wilder collaboration ("mauvaise graine") was a mediocre flick. "Volpone " ,starring Harry Baur , was made one year after Esway's effort .(Of course the play was anterior)
What am I driving at ? Simply that a movie featuring the great Raimu and such seasoned actors as Gabrielle Dorziat ,Jean Tissier,Alerme , Guitry's favorite and once wife Jacqueline Delubac cannot be that much drab.A masterpiece it is absolutely not ;but it is a sprightly funny comedy with several irresistible scenes:The producer(Tissier, with a speech oozing with insincerity) ,asking the banker some money to make a saucy (for the time!) film .Raimu ,speaking broken English with his provençal accent .The same ,pretending he is deaf ,and answering at the wrong moment.
Sometimes hardly a comedy ( funny happy end!), the movie depicts a mean, calculating ,ungrateful and hypocrit humanity ;the end of the movie is almost tragic: one cannot trust anyone, from the sister to the protégé to the mistress one really loves .
let's not forget ,that: The Esway/Wilder collaboration ("mauvaise graine") was a mediocre flick. "Volpone " ,starring Harry Baur , was made one year after Esway's effort .(Of course the play was anterior)
What am I driving at ? Simply that a movie featuring the great Raimu and such seasoned actors as Gabrielle Dorziat ,Jean Tissier,Alerme , Guitry's favorite and once wife Jacqueline Delubac cannot be that much drab.A masterpiece it is absolutely not ;but it is a sprightly funny comedy with several irresistible scenes:The producer(Tissier, with a speech oozing with insincerity) ,asking the banker some money to make a saucy (for the time!) film .Raimu ,speaking broken English with his provençal accent .The same ,pretending he is deaf ,and answering at the wrong moment.
Sometimes hardly a comedy ( funny happy end!), the movie depicts a mean, calculating ,ungrateful and hypocrit humanity ;the end of the movie is almost tragic: one cannot trust anyone, from the sister to the protégé to the mistress one really loves .