This is such a funny film the most perplexing thing hinges on how so few IMDb film buffs have awarded it votes - at time of writing this review it had just 14.
The story hinges on the idea of a holiday house swap between a French family Cecile Chirol (played by Elise Tielrooy) her husband Marc (Phillip Lefebvre) and their Turkish counterparts Burhan and Banu (Ozz Nujen and scriptwriter Sedef Ecer) plus their accompanying teenage children. As with all great comedy things go awry from the outset.
Marc has to abandon the vacation and return to work immediately when a sudden Chinese takeover of his company nears completion. Thus the French family must change plans quickly and stay home, but before they can figure out how handle matters the Turkish house guests duly arrive. Burhan and his wife are unimpressed but remain calm and stoical ....initially. There isn't sufficient space to accommodate all eight people. Inevitably tensions arise in any number of ways from the off, together with intolerance and a preponderance of misunderstandings – all of which are utterly hilarious.
In no time, and within minutes of their arrival, Burhan's daughter Defne (Shemss Audat) is holding hands and giggling with the French's family's son Victor (Maxime Coggio). Something suspicious is in the offing which takes both sets of parents nearly the entire film to wise-up to.
Marc Chirol loses his job, the wives wonder if they are being deceived, the children engage in a little nefarious blackmail orchestrated by Betty (Camille Verschuere), friendships form, and there's more than one unexpected love match to keep things bubbling at fever pitch. So much goes on the storyline develops very pleasantly, along with many glorious mix-ups between all members of both families. The pace seldom slackens, but on occasion it does the story is enriched, while twists and humour vary in light and shade to the extent each characters' concerns are fully developed so well each of them feels like a familiar old friend as the story unfurls.
No-one makes this sort of film better than the French, who excel in family situation comedy. Lorenzo Gabriele directs superbly, and the cinematography never misses an opportunity to reveal France at its picturesque best. The co-written script delights too. I give this movie my strongest recommendation. Sit back and enjoy!
The story hinges on the idea of a holiday house swap between a French family Cecile Chirol (played by Elise Tielrooy) her husband Marc (Phillip Lefebvre) and their Turkish counterparts Burhan and Banu (Ozz Nujen and scriptwriter Sedef Ecer) plus their accompanying teenage children. As with all great comedy things go awry from the outset.
Marc has to abandon the vacation and return to work immediately when a sudden Chinese takeover of his company nears completion. Thus the French family must change plans quickly and stay home, but before they can figure out how handle matters the Turkish house guests duly arrive. Burhan and his wife are unimpressed but remain calm and stoical ....initially. There isn't sufficient space to accommodate all eight people. Inevitably tensions arise in any number of ways from the off, together with intolerance and a preponderance of misunderstandings – all of which are utterly hilarious.
In no time, and within minutes of their arrival, Burhan's daughter Defne (Shemss Audat) is holding hands and giggling with the French's family's son Victor (Maxime Coggio). Something suspicious is in the offing which takes both sets of parents nearly the entire film to wise-up to.
Marc Chirol loses his job, the wives wonder if they are being deceived, the children engage in a little nefarious blackmail orchestrated by Betty (Camille Verschuere), friendships form, and there's more than one unexpected love match to keep things bubbling at fever pitch. So much goes on the storyline develops very pleasantly, along with many glorious mix-ups between all members of both families. The pace seldom slackens, but on occasion it does the story is enriched, while twists and humour vary in light and shade to the extent each characters' concerns are fully developed so well each of them feels like a familiar old friend as the story unfurls.
No-one makes this sort of film better than the French, who excel in family situation comedy. Lorenzo Gabriele directs superbly, and the cinematography never misses an opportunity to reveal France at its picturesque best. The co-written script delights too. I give this movie my strongest recommendation. Sit back and enjoy!
