Sur un arbre perché

Perched on a Tree (L'Arbre, le Maire et la Médiathèque) is a 1971 French comedy starring the legendary Louis de Funès. While de Funès is typically known for his energetic and hilarious performances, this film unfortunately doesn't quite hit the mark for me.

One of the main issues with the film is its pacing. The story, which revolves around a man who finds himself stuck in a tree after a car accident, drags on and feels overly long. The plot lacks the dynamic energy and quick wit that usually characterize de Funès' films, making it feel somewhat tedious and drawn-out.

Despite these flaws, Louis de Funès still manages to deliver a commendable performance. His unique brand of physical comedy and expressive facial expressions provide some genuinely funny moments, which is a testament to his talent. However, even his performance can't fully compensate for the film's lackluster storyline and slow progression.

In conclusion, Perched on a Tree has its moments of humor thanks to Louis de Funès, but the overall experience is marred by its slow and drawn-out plot. It's a film that might appeal to die-hard fans of de Funès, but it's not one that I would watch again. I give it a 6/10 for the occasional laughs and de Funès' performance, though it falls short of his more memorable works.

Imagine George Clooney and Jim Carrey alone in the car between sky and sea with Cathrin Zitta on the backseat doing with her ... sex? No ... not sex, COMEDY! You can't? This is simply because Jim Carrey cannot even compare with the mighty comic genius of the great De Funes. Please don't even think to remake (in other words, steal) his genial films EVER! Please, Hollywood. PLEASE, do your usual blockbusters about slapstick comedy situations involving petting, flirting, masturbating, copulating, ejaculating and please PLEASE leave monsters in comedy like monsieur De Funes rest in peace. What more is to be said. You cannot understand this movie unless you were born European. Sure it will be boring to the Americans excluding few brief nudity scenes with young Geraldine Chaplin wearing really funny trousers.

Consider this: Three people in a car, driving of a cliff that goes a thousand feet

into the ocean. Halfway down the precipice there is a pine. That car

lands in this tree - mid ways between the world and ocean. No

one has seen the accident. No one know they are there. How can they survive? This is a sit-com of incredible humorous value.

This is not a comedy. It has funny parts, yet that is not enough to have a comedy. What makes things worse is de Funes' fame. Himself a great actor, yet the audience is used to see him as a funny man. So used that people just don't understand what they are seeing with their own eyes. After all, they read de Funes on the poster so they paid to be amused, so in a way it's not their fault. It's the typecasting Hollywood actors try so much to avoid.

This is both a drama and a portrait of the post Second World War (post deGaulle to be more precise). I wouldn't go as far say it's the drama of the french society after the boom of the '60s. These are not regular characters, these are types. And the few funny scenes are only to make the pill easier to swallow. And not every scene is funny, even if the audience laughs - the scenes when de Funes' character escapes certain death are not funny, are terribly real.

You have almost everything here: the influence of cheap entertainment (the TV movie preview), the influence of news media (both the fact that the ones to be saved are finding out from TV what is going on and the crowd drawn up by the publicity), the unfaithful young wife looking for temporary relief, the socialist young man looking for adventure, the big corporation doing something else than declared, the big corporation ready to do anything to reach its estimated profits, the church, the honorable wife, the 20th century entertainment, etc. Even the fact that although everybody is working hard to justify their job, nobody is helping in any way and the rush for cheap thrills experienced through a third party as people want to know how does it feel, yet nobody is ready to trying for themselves, not even the guy sent to the rescue.

This is a must see, but leave the comedy expectations as theater door.

Contact me with Questions, Comments or Suggestions ryitfork @ bitmail.ch

a nice story. tension and humor. love, French irony, Louis de Funes and Geraldine Chaplin, Olivier de Funes, a car, a pine and too many details. a lot of clichés. but, far to be memorable, it is a decent comedy about media, revenge and survive. and good occasion to discover, again, a great actor not in one of his high roles but in an exercise to use the nuances of his stereotypes character. a film about family, business and religion, about adventure and relations in crisis, not very credible but nice and almost useful. one of easy films who reminds old fashion humor recipes. and who has the right dose of nostalgic emotion. so, see it !