If I had to sum up "Le cerveau" ("The Brain" in English), I would call it a combination of several genres that were big throughout the '60s. It's mostly a caper, with two distinct groups plotting a heist. But it's also a zany comedy, and there's an element of swinging London. Finally, the last scene reminds us of what both "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" and "The Magic Christian" showed: people will do anything for money.
Despite a few slow parts, Gérard Oury's movie is a fun romp. Jean-Paul Belmondo, Bourvil, David Niven and Eli Wallach have all sorts of fun with this over-the-top material. It's the sort of movie that could've only gotten made when it did, and we should thank our lucky stars that they did. There's no social commentary or anything, just plain old funny stuff. I doubt that it's available on any streaming platform, so you'll probably have to look in a video store to find it.
Despite a few slow parts, Gérard Oury's movie is a fun romp. Jean-Paul Belmondo, Bourvil, David Niven and Eli Wallach have all sorts of fun with this over-the-top material. It's the sort of movie that could've only gotten made when it did, and we should thank our lucky stars that they did. There's no social commentary or anything, just plain old funny stuff. I doubt that it's available on any streaming platform, so you'll probably have to look in a video store to find it.