Le Grand soir (2012)
Directed by Gustave de Kervern, Benoît Delépine

Film Review

Anarchy rules, O.K.?   Well, that's what Gustave de Kervern and Benoît Delépine would have us believe with their latest unhinged comedy, a well-timed, well-judged full-frontal assault on the failings of the consumerist society.  Le Grand soir is Kervern and Delépine's fifth feature, and is likely to be their most successful given its populist take on the most pressing themes of our time, the current world recession and its drastic human consequences.  Kervern and Delépine first found fame through their satirical programmes for the French TV channel Canal+ about the fictional country of Groland (a parody of modern day France).  After their highly experimental first two films - Aaltra (2004) and Avida (2006) - they made their first foray into social comedy with the union-themed farce Louise-Michel (2008), before scoring a hit with the light-hearted biker road movie Mammuth (2010).

Le Grand soir is Kervern and Delépine's most wildly entertaining film so far, but as well as being a sublime piece of comedy it also provides a sobering commentary on the downside of capitalism, reminding us how it can create a false sense of security, cause bitter divisions in our society and crush individuality.  The film does not indulge in futile political grandstanding but it nevertheless comes pretty close to the mark in its diagnosis of what is wrong with the consumerist society.   The medicine it prescribes may, however, be a little too strong for some to swallow...

In the best tradition of French comedy, Le Grand soir revolves around an oddball couple - here a committed street Punk and his conformist-turned-rebel brother, played to perfection by Benoît Poelvoorde and Albert Dupontel.  Both actors are at their comedic best and bring not only a manic energy to the film but also a fair quantity of humanity, without which it would undoubtedly have been a much drier, far less engaging affair.  With his Mohawk hairstyle and oversized Doc Martens, Poelvoorde looks as if he has just sprung from the pages of a comic book, ferociously funny as he spits and growls at a crumbling socio-economic system with his equally ill-humoured dog (who manages to get the biggest laughs).  The bad boys' parents (a model of conformity with a worrying potato fetish) are humourously played by Brigitte Fontaine and Areski Belkacem, a popular singing duo in France since the 1970s.

Kervern and Delépine's most inspired touch is to film their hyper-realist urban comedy as a western.  The deserted shopping centre in which much of the action takes place looks like a vast concrete desert, a no man's land where only zombie-like employees for dying companies and misfits intent on trouble ever venture.  It is the bleakest metaphor for the soulless aridity of consumerism - a wasteland of hollow dreams that people can no longer afford.  Equally, Jean-Pierre epitomises all the victims of a flawed economic model.  A willing slave to capitalism, he believed that by conforming to the norm he was safe and had a secure future.  He is just one of the millions of sheep who are happy to graze under the benign watch of capitalism, as unsuspecting of the storms to come as a newborn lamb is of the road that leads to the abattoir.  When he sees how things really are, Jean-Pierre's first reaction is to set fire to himself (cue one of the film's best gags) before he comes to his senses and decides to ally himself with his anarchist brother.  Jean-Pierre writes the word 'Dead' on his forehead, so that when the brothers stand side-by-side they become 'Not Dead'.  By rejecting conformity and consumerism, Jean-Pierre makes himself a free man.

What Kervern and Delépine offer us is far from being a cry of despair.  Just as the recession allows Jean-Pierre to discover his identity and find a more meaningful life than the cellophane-wrapped nine-till-five alternative offered by consumerism, so it may turn out to be a liberating phenomenon for society as a whole, forcing us all to reassess our priorities and our values.  Le Grand soir is not only marvellous therapy against the present recessionary blues, it offers a barrel-load of hope for the future.  Anarchy may not be as bad as you think.

Film Synopsis

Not and Jean-Pierre are two brothers who could not be more different.  In his forties, Not is proud to be the oldest street punk in Europe, happy to live off the detritus of a diseased society in the company of his faithful dog.  Jean-Pierre is equally committed to his life of middle-class conformity, happily married with a cosy job as a furniture salesman in a department store.  But when the downturn comes, Jean-Pierre is ill-equipped to weather the storm.  First he loses his wife, then he loses his job, and after a pathetic suicide attempt the only person he can turn to is his brother Not.  Burning with resentment, Jean-Pierre suddenly acquires his brother's anarchic streak and together they mount their own small rebellion against a system that, in their eyes, has forfeited its right to exist...