I Hate My Best Friends' Kids (2007)

A month of vacation with friends: difficult to bear the kids of his friends, especially when the methods of education differ and that some prove to be unbearable.

Director:

Anne Fassio

Writer:

Anne Fassio

Stars:

Élodie Bouchez, Valérie Benguigui, Axelle Laffont

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Élodie Bouchez	...	Cécile
Valérie Benguigui	...	Louise
Axelle Laffont	...	Pénélope
Lionel Abelanski	...	Fred
Arié Elmaleh	...	Sami
Eric Savin	...	Vincent
Anne Fassio	...	Véro
Joseph Malerba	...	Jean-Michel
Julie De Bona	...	Sofia
Nicolas Jouxtel	...	Paolo
Marie-Elisabeth Bronn	...	Rose
Clémence Lassalas	...	Colombe
Cannelle Carré-Cassaigne	...	Luna
Violette Rabiers du Villars	...	Ange
Barthélémy Guillemard	...	Yanis

Storyline

A month of vacation with friends: difficult to bear the kids of his friends, especially when the methods of education differ and that some prove to be unbearable.

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Plot Keywords:

f rated | sex on the floor | sex scene | topless female nudity | female nudity | 

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Genres:

Comedy

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Did You Know?

Quotes

Fred: I am called Fred but you can call me... for help!

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Soundtracks

Toi mon toit
Written by Elli Medeiros (1986)
Performed by Élodie Bouchez, Valérie Benguigui and Axelle Laffont

User Reviews

Too many cooks...

« Je déteste les enfants des autres » is one of those « group films » French cinema is fond of and whose father-founder is Claude Sautet with his iconic « Vincent, François, Paul et les autres »

The group in question here consists of Cécile, who takes a vacation in the company of Paolo, her sensitive son, and Rose, her younger daughter (a dreadful pain in the neck) but without her husband she can't put up with any longer. At the beginning of the story she joins three friends who have rented a house in Provence: Pénélope, a single woman unable to keep a man in her life, accompanied by her offspring (Janis,her lazy teenage son and Sataya, his half-sister) and Fred & Louise, a self-proclaimed ideal couple with three kids: Luna, Colombe (a wily spoilt little girl) and Ange, their newborn baby.

To complicate matters, another family turns up unexpectedly, composed of Véro, Cécile's employer, whom she had invited to come never thinking she would, her husband Jean-Mi, their sons Raphaël and Rémy and their daughter Madeleine. To say nothing of the more sporadic but upsetting presence of another of Cécile's friends, the sex bomb Sofia, as well as of Samir, the owner of the rented house posing as the repairman.

With so many people involved how could things not go awry? And they do go wrong, illustrating to perfection the old saying "Too many cooks spoil the broth".

This is Anne Fassio's first feature-length film and for sure not a masterpiece. But it is no flop either, as too many people tend to say. First, forget the Claude Sautet reference: it is overwhelming and Fassio never claims to play in the same league. Second, do not go and see this film if you fancy a summer comedy, for Anne Fassio is not too good at making the spectator laugh. Most of her gags misfire, except maybe during the sequence of Cecile's employer's inopportune visit with all the characters uniting their efforts to stop her from taking root. But neither Fred's rowing lessons, nor sexpot Sofia's antics or Samir's double game are as funny as they could be.

On the other hand, if you approach the film from a different, more serious angle, it starts becoming interesting. The characters and their behaviors are well enough studied, especially Fred and Louise's fake ideal couple, whose flaws are made more and more apparent. Moreover, the theme of children's education methods as a bone of contention between people is examined with relevance. And Fassio is at her best by the end of the film when tragedy insinuates itself into what seemed to be a mere psychological comedy.

The acting is satisfactory on the whole but Elodie Bouchez stands out as poor Cécile, bullied by some adults and certain kids to the point of desperation.

All things considered, an imperfect movie but not so bad as usually presented

Details

Official Sites:

SND [France]

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

4 July 2007 (France)

Also Known As:

I Hate My Best Friends' Kids

Filming Locations:

France

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$2,205,645

Company Credits

Production Co:

Delante Films, SND Films, Canal+

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1