Based on one of first French comic strips ,"La Famille Fenouillard" was first a short in the silent era;Christophe ,the writer ,was also a teacher and he creates several popular -now old-fashioned-characters ,besides this Fenouillard family: Le Sapeur Camembert (= Fireman Camenbert) and Le Savant Cosinus (=scientist Cosine ),the latter predating a little Hergé's Professeur Tournesol (Calculus).
In Yves Robert,filmography,it comes just before his biggest blockbuster "La Guerre Des Boutons" and features Jean Richard and Sophie Desmarets as the leads.This is one of the rare successful attempts at transferring a comic strip to the screen;it's all the more amazing since other old-fashioned stories such as "Bibi Fricotin" and "Bécassine " failed dismally. A picture comes to life and the imaginary world of SAint Remy Sur Deule ,wonderfully created in the studio -it was rather defiant at the time of the N.V- is before our eyes ,with the firemen,the holier-than-thou mayor,and La Famille Fenouillard,Agénor,Léocadie,and the two daughters Artémise and Cunégonde in their hosier's shop.
The screenplay is quite mad ,which is fine with me:beginning with a rivalry between the mayor and FEnouillard ,who would like to replace him,it takes our heroes to Paris to see the Eiffel tower;but they take the wrong train (after the laborious explanations of the station master),winds up on a ship who sails away to Brazil:here ,they get lost in the virgin forest which looks like an exotic garden ,complete with parrots,boas and cannibals who put them on their menu :their naivete is worth the price of admission ;they have not a clue of what's happening,even when a young native says "yummy yummy'.
Saved by convicts escaped from a penal colony (a nod to Gaston Leroux's "Chéri-Bibi",the leader of the pack is called "Souris- Bibi"),they try to get back home on a ship which takes them to the North Pole ,where they live,as tradition (or cliché ,more like) has it,in an igloo;then Madame gets drunk with sake in Japan ,dressed up as a geisha ;as there's no boat when they get to the harbor ,they will "walk" their way home via Africa rivers ,the pyramids,the road to Damascus...
When they have arrived ,they will have seen the whole world ,everything but the Eiffel Tower.
A hullabaloo around the world -it all happens in 78 minutes ,if you do not believe me,do watch the movie !- and political success for dad and true love for the daughters to boot (but the mayor's sash is for mom)
Yves Robert -who appears for a cameo in the railway station,watch out!- was always a grown up kid,as his best movies,this one,"La Guerre Des Boutons" "La Gloire De Mon Père" or "Le Château De Ma Mère " testify.Happy he who has kept his child's soul!
In Yves Robert,filmography,it comes just before his biggest blockbuster "La Guerre Des Boutons" and features Jean Richard and Sophie Desmarets as the leads.This is one of the rare successful attempts at transferring a comic strip to the screen;it's all the more amazing since other old-fashioned stories such as "Bibi Fricotin" and "Bécassine " failed dismally. A picture comes to life and the imaginary world of SAint Remy Sur Deule ,wonderfully created in the studio -it was rather defiant at the time of the N.V- is before our eyes ,with the firemen,the holier-than-thou mayor,and La Famille Fenouillard,Agénor,Léocadie,and the two daughters Artémise and Cunégonde in their hosier's shop.
The screenplay is quite mad ,which is fine with me:beginning with a rivalry between the mayor and FEnouillard ,who would like to replace him,it takes our heroes to Paris to see the Eiffel tower;but they take the wrong train (after the laborious explanations of the station master),winds up on a ship who sails away to Brazil:here ,they get lost in the virgin forest which looks like an exotic garden ,complete with parrots,boas and cannibals who put them on their menu :their naivete is worth the price of admission ;they have not a clue of what's happening,even when a young native says "yummy yummy'.
Saved by convicts escaped from a penal colony (a nod to Gaston Leroux's "Chéri-Bibi",the leader of the pack is called "Souris- Bibi"),they try to get back home on a ship which takes them to the North Pole ,where they live,as tradition (or cliché ,more like) has it,in an igloo;then Madame gets drunk with sake in Japan ,dressed up as a geisha ;as there's no boat when they get to the harbor ,they will "walk" their way home via Africa rivers ,the pyramids,the road to Damascus...
When they have arrived ,they will have seen the whole world ,everything but the Eiffel Tower.
A hullabaloo around the world -it all happens in 78 minutes ,if you do not believe me,do watch the movie !- and political success for dad and true love for the daughters to boot (but the mayor's sash is for mom)
Yves Robert -who appears for a cameo in the railway station,watch out!- was always a grown up kid,as his best movies,this one,"La Guerre Des Boutons" "La Gloire De Mon Père" or "Le Château De Ma Mère " testify.Happy he who has kept his child's soul!
