The national patrimony of France is getting depleted through a dastardly plot, which involves the replacement of celebrated monuments through plaster copies. The crimes are claimed by a man calling himself "Furax". Does this mean that the notorious master criminal, thought by many to have died, is up to his old tricks again ? The two chiefs of rival police services are determined to solve the case, come what may...
To the best of my knowledge, "Signé Furax" is based on a specific season of an old and storied radio series full of absurd humor. (French viewers and reviewers should feel free to correct me.) The movie, which is indeed full of absurd and surreal humor, spoofs novels and movies about esoteric cults and secret societies. It also spoofs novels and movies of the "super policeman versus evil mastermind" type.
For British readers, the general tone reminds one of a Goon Show / Monty Python collaboration, complete with non sequiturs, puns, jokes, weird effects and breaking-the-fourth-wall tricks. Silliness abounds and both logic and plausibility are beaten like red-headed stepchildren. To give you an idea : the plot deals with a secret society worshipping a "boudin" (sausage) as a symbol of holiness and power.
I watched "Signé Furax" with pleasure, but I thought it was most uneven. Some of the gags were sublime, others (like the running joke about the blonde secretary getting her hair pulled) would have bored a toddler. Moreover, some of the most appealing characters were criminally underused, such as the Black & White tandem or Malvina, the slavishly infatuated girlfriend of the evil mastermind. Finally : perhaps the whole would have worked better as a collection of sketches ?
Two highlights : a) a whacky pursuit culminating in the equally whacky hijacking of a passenger bus, to the unending delight of the driver and b) a secret society singing its hymn, to wit "Everybody stinks, you stink too, but the Great Leader smells of Eau de Cologne". In a just world this song would be played, loudly and emphatically, every time some guru opens his mouth.
To the best of my knowledge, "Signé Furax" is based on a specific season of an old and storied radio series full of absurd humor. (French viewers and reviewers should feel free to correct me.) The movie, which is indeed full of absurd and surreal humor, spoofs novels and movies about esoteric cults and secret societies. It also spoofs novels and movies of the "super policeman versus evil mastermind" type.
For British readers, the general tone reminds one of a Goon Show / Monty Python collaboration, complete with non sequiturs, puns, jokes, weird effects and breaking-the-fourth-wall tricks. Silliness abounds and both logic and plausibility are beaten like red-headed stepchildren. To give you an idea : the plot deals with a secret society worshipping a "boudin" (sausage) as a symbol of holiness and power.
I watched "Signé Furax" with pleasure, but I thought it was most uneven. Some of the gags were sublime, others (like the running joke about the blonde secretary getting her hair pulled) would have bored a toddler. Moreover, some of the most appealing characters were criminally underused, such as the Black & White tandem or Malvina, the slavishly infatuated girlfriend of the evil mastermind. Finally : perhaps the whole would have worked better as a collection of sketches ?
Two highlights : a) a whacky pursuit culminating in the equally whacky hijacking of a passenger bus, to the unending delight of the driver and b) a secret society singing its hymn, to wit "Everybody stinks, you stink too, but the Great Leader smells of Eau de Cologne". In a just world this song would be played, loudly and emphatically, every time some guru opens his mouth.
