This is the sort of film the critics love to label "a witless farce", and certainly for the first 30 minutes or so, this description would be fair enough. True, Gerard Oury's direction is rather inventive, but the acting tends to be so heavy-handed that it smothers the jokes (such as they are). An obviously dubbed voice for Jean-Paul Belmondo doesn't help matters. It's fortunate that the other main players – including the delightful Bourvil – speak their own English lines. In fact, the film was actually filmed in two versions. Nevertheless, it's still a bit of a pain until the introduction of super-charming Silvia Monti, at which point it definitely picks up, not only in Miss M's physical attractiveness, but in the level of the farce itself. Even the direction becomes more amusing and super-delightfully extravagant, while the budget becomes suddenly more and more expensive and expansive. In fact, some of the stunts are almost unbelievable, but we see them happening with our own eyes – and on real locations and with hundreds of extras too! Adroit film editing also adds a lot to our entertainment. In fact, it's a pleasure to see a real film director like Gerard Oury spending the producer's money so lavishly and well. True, not everyone will like this sort of crazy, super-expensively produced slapstick, but it becomes so well-timed and brilliantly directed, that – once Miss Monti enters the fray – I loved every second and minute of it! French title: Le Cerveau.
Review of The Brain
