Toto the Hero (1991)

Thomas and Alfred were born around the same time; a fire in the nursery had nurses scrambling to save the newborns. Because he felt that he deserved Alfred's good fortune at being born into... See full summary »

Director:

Jaco Van Dormael

Writers:

Didier De Neck (collaborator), Pascal Lonhay (collaborator)

Stars:

Michel Bouquet, Mireille Perrier, Jo De Backer

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 16 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michel Bouquet	...	Old Thomas / Voice of Adult Thomas
Jo De Backer	...	Adult Thomas
Thomas Godet	...	Child Thomas
Gisela Uhlen	...	Old Evelyne
Mireille Perrier	...	Voice of old Evelyne / Adult Evelyne
Sandrine Blancke	...	Alice
Peter Böhlke	...	Old Alfred
Michel Robin	...	Old Alfred (voice)
Didier Ferney	...	Adult Alfred
Hugo Harold-Harrison	...	Child Alfred
Fabienne Loriaux	...	Thomas' Mother
Klaus Schindler	...	Thomas' Father
Patrick Waleffe	...	Voice of Thomas' Father / Official
Pascal Duquenne	...	Adult Cèlestin
François Toumarkine	...	Adult Cèlestin (voice)

Storyline

Thomas and Alfred were born around the same time; a fire in the nursery had nurses scrambling to save the newborns. Because he felt that he deserved Alfred's good fortune at being born into a wealthy family, Thomas conceives the idea that he and Alfred were switched at birth, and he can't help seeing that his unhappiness should be Alfred's, from the loss of his sister to his inability to have a relationship with the woman Evelyne. So, as his life is ending, he formulates a plan of revenge against his bitter enemy, his lifetime adversary, the man who stole his existence.

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Plot Keywords:

neighbor neighbor relationship | swapping lives | death of sister | incest | brother sister relationship | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for violence and sensuality (nudity)

Details

Country:

Belgium France Germany

Language:

French

Release Date:

19 June 1991 (France)

Also Known As:

Totò the Hero

Filming Locations:

Baasrode, Dendermonde, Flanders, Belgium

Box Office

Gross USA:

$1,228,153

Company Credits

Production Co:

Iblis Films, Metropolis Filmproduction, Philippe Dussart

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Many of the railway scenes in the movie were shot on a preserved railway line between Dendermonde and Puurs, Belgium.

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Connections

Featured in Zomergasten: Episode #10.2 (1997)

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Soundtracks

Boum
Music by Charles Trenet
Lyrics by Charles Trenet
Performed by Charles Trenet
Societe EMI France
(c) Edition Vianelly

User Reviews

Excellent movie about the extraordinary life of an ordinary man.

Take a deep breath... and dive... The movie is about to take you in a journey trough an extraordinary life... Not very overwhelming, one might say... but the story of "Toto le héros" is an unpredictable tale about a man who always thought he was nobody, and found at the very end of his life, that he was, in fact, a hero...

The very simple storyline is a sketch, for director Jaco Van Dormael, to elaborate a complex visual narration. Since we follow the main character, Toto, throughout his whole life, the movie is full of "time games". Van Dormael uses flash-back and leap in time to get away from a simple linearity. The aproach to dreams is very similar to Terry Gilliam's that we've seen in "Brazil" and "12 Monkeys".

"Toto le héros" is a touching film that will please the movie critics as well as the common viewers.

It is a chef-d'oeuvre...