The Goat (1981)
"La chèvre" (original title)

A dedicated private eye searches for a businessman's daughter in Mexico, but the case is complicated by the amateur sleuthing of the client's accountant.

Director:

Francis Veber

Writer:

Francis Veber

Stars:

Pierre Richard, Gérard Depardieu, Pedro Armendáriz Jr.

1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Pierre Richard	...	François Perrin
Gérard Depardieu	...	Campana
Pedro Armendáriz Jr.	...	The Captain
Corynne Charbit	...	Marie Bens
Maritza Olivares	...	La prostituée
André Valardy	...	Meyer
Jorge Luke	...	Arbal
Sergio Calderón	...	Prisoner
Michel Robin	...	Alexandre Bens
Robert Dalban	...	Le technicien
Jacqueline Noëlle
Michel Fortin	...	Le type à Orly
Marjorie Godin
Jean-Louis Fortuit
Pulcher Castan

Storyline

A dedicated private eye searches for a businessman's daughter in Mexico, but the case is complicated by the amateur sleuthing of the client's accountant.

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Plot Keywords:

mexico | search | memory loss | daughter of the boss | farce | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Crime

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Details

Country:

France Mexico Malta

Language:

French Spanish

Release Date:

26 July 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Goat

Filming Locations:

Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico

Company Credits

Production Co:

Conacite Uno, Fideline Films, Gaumont International

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Most of the Spanish actors recited their dialogs in Spanish, and later they were dubbed in French.

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Goofs

In the scene where Campana and Perrin are eating breakfast at the airport, after Perrin puts salt on his meal he lights a cigarette. As the shots switch from facing Perrin and facing Campana, the cigarette switches hands (from Perrin's right to his left respectively).

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Connections

Remade as Pure Luck (1991)

User Reviews

To Catch A Dork

This was only Veber's second film as a double-threat (writer-director) and the first to employ the inspired casting of Gerard Depardieu and Pierre Richard. Its recent re-release on DVD to celebrate its 20th anniversary should make it accessible to a whole new generation too young to have caught it first time around. One only has to read the comments - almost exclusively raves - to guage the quality and I can only add one more voice, slightly hoarse from so much laughter in support. The concept is simplicity itself; take one accident-prone girl and because her father is an industrialist, ergo wealthy, let her predilection for bad luck result in her playing into the hands of kidnappers THEN, instead of hiring a team of SAS/mercenaries to track her down hire just One private investigator and supply him with a human bloodhound in the form of as big a dork as the missing girl. Pierre Richard breathes life into a dork who doesn't wait for a banana skin to trip on, he brings his own. Team him up with a pragmatic Gerard Depardieu who refuses to give house room to the concept of bad luck and just stand back and let them get on with it. The Mexican setting is largely irrelevant, it could just as well have been set in Marseilles but laffs are laffs wherever they occur. The ending is particularly effective - it's always something of a problem to end a story like this

• as the two Dorks fall in love as expected but then Veber rounds it

off with one last neat and very apposite visual gag. Not to be missed. 10/10