May Fools (1990)

Like Vanya, in Malle's last film, Milou never left the family estate. His mother dies during the May 1968 student uprising in Paris. The brother who is the London correspondent for Le Monde... See full summary »

Director:

Louis Malle

Writers:

Louis Malle (scenario), Jean-Claude Carrière (scenario)

Stars:

Miou-Miou, Michel Piccoli, Michel Duchaussoy

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 2 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Miou-Miou	...	Camille
Michel Piccoli	...	Milou
Michel Duchaussoy	...	Georges
Bruno Carette	...	Grimaldi
Paulette Dubost	...	Mrs. Vieuzac
Harriet Walter	...	Lily
Martine Gautier	...	Adele
Rozenne Le Tallec	...	Marie-Laure
Jeanne Herry	...	Françoise (as Jeanne Herry-Leclerc)
Renaud Danner	...	Pierre-Alain
François Berléand	...	Daniel
Dominique Blanc	...	Claire
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Serge Angeloff	...	Adele's fiancé
Anne-Marie Bonange	...	Neighbor
Marcel Bories	...	Leonce

Storyline

Like Vanya, in Malle's last film, Milou never left the family estate. His mother dies during the May 1968 student uprising in Paris. The brother who is the London correspondent for Le Monde keeps turning up the volume of the radio for the latest news. A deceased sister's interest in the estate is represented by a niece who is an antique dealer, who is most interested in grandmother's emerald ring that Milou's daughter Camille has already slipped on her finger. A non-relative, a truck driver who can't deliver his load of tomatoes in Paris, brings a nephew who was part of the uprising. Everyone is on strike and the matriarch can't be buried.

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Plot Keywords:

dancing around corpse | year 1968 | comedy of manners | sophisticated comedy | political satire | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

France Italy

Language:

French English

Release Date:

July 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

May Fools

Filming Locations:

Château du Calaoue, Gers, France

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$20,078, 24 June 1990

Gross USA:

$1,576,702

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,576,702

Company Credits

Production Co:

Nouvelles Éditions de Films (NEF), TF1 Films Production, Ellepi Films

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jeanne Herry, who plays Françoise (the little girl) is the real-life daughter of Miou-Miou. In 2014 she directed her first feature film, 'Elle l'adore', starring Sandrine Kiberlain and Laurent Lafitte.

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Connections

Featured in Zomergasten: Episode #5.2 (1992)

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Soundtracks

Prélude: 'Général Lavine' Eccentric
Music by Claude Debussy

User Reviews

A few summer days

Erm... I feel a little embarrassed; I can't join in the praise for this film, which I found too long and too unfocused. Louis Malle seems to have thought that just following Michel Piccoli around the estate as he tends to the bees and catches crabs, among other duties, while Stéphane Grappelli plays his winsome harmonica was enough to keep us engrossed. The real story is what was going on in Paris and other large cities in May 1968 (it was quite dramatic, as I recall from my safe haven in North America).

The story is flimsy: Milou and his brother Georges along with Milou's daughter Camille and Georges's children Claire and Pierre-Alain gather to attend the funeral of Mme. Vieuzac and distribute the family goods. Claire and Camille have a lively argument about the heritage, which disturbs Milou. His life has been so tranquil up to now...

The actors are let loose to give us a succession of star moments. Piccoli has his scene with the crabs, Miou-Miou her dalliance with the lawyer (superb François Berléand), Bruno Carette shows up midway as the lusty truck driver, Paulette Dubost is included as a tribute to the generation of Renoir and Carné. Finally Dominique Blanc as Georges's lesbian daughter has the best moments: she plays a Debussy piece ferociously as she watches her girlfriend flirting with Pierre-Alain. You can practically see the smoke pouring out of the piano. She also tantalizes the trucker--and us--with her bare breasts.

I don't know which director did the best account of the events of 68; possibly Wexler with his Medium Cool. Malle has not carried us back to those frenzied days, but has given us a series of vignettes as a way to show off the talents of his cast.