Après vous 2003

A popular hit in France, this odd-couple comedy pairs Daniel Auteuil as a fastidious maitre d’ with José Garcia as the wannabe suicide whose life he saves. Star power trounces dubious psychology: Auteuil proves as deft and dry a comedian as he is a dramatic actor, the perfect foil to the damp-eyed Garcia who teases slow-burning comedy out of broken-hearted despondency. Needless to say there’s a woman at the root of Garcia’s trouble; an elegantly flustered Sandrine Kilberlain is the object of his obsession. Her bewilderment escalates into total confusion when Auteuil decides he must meet the woman who has caused his new best friend such misery. Incognito, he might be able to patch things up. Then again… Salvadori (Wild Target) and co-author Danièle Dubroux (Diary of a Seducer) make some tart observations about friendship and betrayal, but mostly this film’s about being in love and behaving like an idiot. Garcia’s inept audition for the sommelier position in Auteuil’s brasserie is a show-stopper. — BG