Typical French comic/cartoon humor under Oury's savvy direction, after his successes with LE CORNIAUD (Fr 1965) and LA GRANDE VADROUILLE (Fr 1967).
Perhaps the missing piece in this film is Louis de Funés, though all four leads are excellent. Still, Oury without de Funés seems to miss a beat. That said, Bourvil is brilliant as the simpleton thief; Belmondo does well throughout as an enterprising thief, and he shares a wonderful sequence with Suzanne, Niven's leopard; class was Niven's hallmark throughout his career, and it is so here; and Wallach continued to portray the in your face criminal, using expletives in various languages for good measure, determined to protect his sister's honor -- no mean effort, given that she is a real piece of candy.
One can find weaknesses in any film, and there are no prizes for finding them here. The cast seemed to have good fun during the shoot, and I had good fun watching it.
Perhaps the missing piece in this film is Louis de Funés, though all four leads are excellent. Still, Oury without de Funés seems to miss a beat. That said, Bourvil is brilliant as the simpleton thief; Belmondo does well throughout as an enterprising thief, and he shares a wonderful sequence with Suzanne, Niven's leopard; class was Niven's hallmark throughout his career, and it is so here; and Wallach continued to portray the in your face criminal, using expletives in various languages for good measure, determined to protect his sister's honor -- no mean effort, given that she is a real piece of candy.
One can find weaknesses in any film, and there are no prizes for finding them here. The cast seemed to have good fun during the shoot, and I had good fun watching it.