‘The French Minister’ plays likes ‘In the Loop’Date: 12/23/2014 A French comedy that seems really familiar is featured in this week’s film review column.
The French Minister
I’m a big fan of the political comedy “In the Loop,” the British film that was an extension of the television series “The Thick of It” – available on Hulu Plus, by the way.
That film gave viewers a darkly cynical but hilarious look at the making and un-making of an international crisis. I highly recommend it for any of my fellow political junkies or people who enjoy creative profanity.
“In the Loop” was made in 2009, and now we have on home video a 2013 French film that is very similar, but not as successful.
“The French Minister” starts out as the story of Arthur Vlaminck (Raphaël Personnaz), a talented writer who is recruited to be a speechwriter for the Minister of Foreign Affairs Alexandre Taillard de Worms (played by Thierry Lhermitte).
Vlaminck is, at least at first, reluctant to take the job, but the minister’s forceful personality makes him accept it with a few less trepidations. He soon discovers the minister is, at the very least, a talking point-driven gasbag and the worst, an idiot.
The staff surrounding the minister understands this and accepts it. Their job is to survive the minister’s eccentricities and to make him look good. The anchor of the office is Claude Maupas (Neils Arestrup), who is actually doing much of the minister’s job for him.
There are some great gags here, including the minister’s obsession with highlighting books and his endless quoting of a third-rate philosopher.
Vlaminck is the viewer’s connection to the real world. In the last quarter of the film, Vlaminck essentially disappears, and the minister starts to be seen as a more effective and heroic figure for no particular reason. It’s a very odd turn that shifts the tone and focus of the film and not for the better.
While I certainly enjoyed many elements of the film, it seems to be a poor substitute for the biting wit of “In the Loop.”
What’s new on Netflix
As I’ve given up on cable television, I’ve subscribed to both Netflix and Hulu Plus. Netflix has recently announced many of the films they will be adding to the streaming service.
There’s some great movies that will be offered that includes the under-rated 2004 thriller “The Village;” the Academy Award winning “Good Will Hunting;” perhaps the best Stephen King adaptation, “Stand by Me;” and the relentless crime drama, “Seven.”
What I’m more excited about is the addition of some classic films. If I have one beef with Netflix is how uneven the service is in terms of offering movies from more than 20 years ago.
I was heartened to see that “War of the Worlds” (1953) and “The Quiet Man” (1952) will be among the offerings.
I did not see the more recent re-make of the H.G. Wells science fiction novel, in part for my admiration of the earlier film and in part of my lack of interest in most anything Tom Cruise does. Yes, the special effects are old school, but they are very good and the production has a real charm about it.
“The Quiet Man” is director John Ford’s love letter to Ireland and in the days when local television stations would run movies was usually seen around St. Patrick’s Day. The film stars John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara and much of the Ford stock company of actors with Irish ancestry. I’m a sucker for most anything with Victor McLagen, (who wasn’t Irish) and he turns in one his best final performances.
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