This is a funny film about a bland man (Daniel Auteuil) who is about to be fired from his job. Contemplating suicide, his new next-door neighbor convinces him not to and comes up with a scheme to prevent the firing--pretend to be gay and then they will be afraid to fire him for fear they will be accused of discrimination. This is especially bad in the eyes of the company chairman because it is a condom factory and they do NOT want to scare away all their gay customers. The job is saved, but a long series of events (good and bad) result in major unforeseen changes--some of which are very funny (such as his being asked to ride on the condom float at the gay pride parade) and some are pretty poignant (his getting beaten up for being gay). As a result of this and good writing, the film isn't predictable and is a lot of fun. Be assured, though, that this movie is not campy and over the top, nor is it super preachy--a nice mix that will satisfy anyone.

PS--Gerard Depardieu plays a VERY unusual role in the film--at first you hate him and then it becomes pretty weird--just watch and see.

François Pignon (Daniel Auteuil) is a meek accountant in a condom factory. He is divorced with a teen son who looks down on him. He is about to be downsized when his pushy neighbor suggests starting a false rumor of his homosexuality by spreading an explicit photo. Management is afraid to fire him. Homophobic co-worker Félix Santini (Gérard Depardieu) is forced to be friendly. Others see him in a different light. Before they saw him as dull but now he's exotic and interesting.

The idea is similar to "I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry". It's slightly better positioned. Daniel Auteuil is fractionally better but his meekness generates its own annoyance. It tries to dig at the social issue. I'm not sure I want to laugh at any of it. Some of the changes from the characters after the lie seem questionable. It's definitely better than the childish Adam Sandler movie but I don't find this that funny.

So often, we think that French cinema likes to be purely artistic that it seems like they can't do comedy. Well, I've seen two French movies that made me nearly die laughing: "Les Visiteurs/The Visitors" and "Le Placard/The Closet". This one portrays a man (Daniel Auteuil) about to get fired, but he makes himself look gay so that it could come across as job discrimination. It leads to a series of unexpected consequences, natch.

A lot of the movie seems like it's just an excuse to be silly. But watching the movie, one can definitely feel the European flavor: strong women, sexual humor coming in surprising places, and other such things. And of course, this flick affirms that Daniel Auteuil and Gerard Depardieu are two of the greatest actors of our time. Above all, I wish to assert that it's always great from time to time to see a movie not afraid to do anything it wants. Really funny.

I swear, it seems like I've seen Gerard Depardieu in more English-speaking roles than French-speaking ones. Then again, I do live in the United States.