Marc Andréoni Movies

Jean-Jacques Annaud directed and co-wrote this wildly offbeat comic fantasy set in an ancient land in the Aegean Sea thousands of years ago. Minor (José Garcia) was abandoned by his parents as a child and was raised by a pack of pigs; he speaks in porcine grunts and lives and loves much like his fellow hogs. Minor is just human enough to have his head turned by Clytia (Melanie Bernier), a beautiful girl living in the nearby village. However, if Minor's lack of social skills weren't enough to keep Clytia away, she's already been pledged to wed handsome and charming Karkos (Sergio Peris-Mencheta). When Minor runs afoul of the tribal leadership, he's removed from his home with the pigs and forced to live in an enchanted forest, where he attracts the not entirely welcome attentions of Pan (Vincent Cassel), a randy half-man and half-goat willing to couple with anything that breathes. When Minor emerges from the forest able to speak with newfound eloquence, the tribal leaders name him their new potentate, and Clytia suddenly finds him a great deal more appealing, which doesn't sit well with Karkos. Sa Majesté Minor (aka His Majesty Minor) was written by Annaud and his frequent collaborator Gérard Brach, who died shortly after the film began shooting. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

The Sephardic Jewish characters who headlined the riotous 1997 comedy Would I Lie To You? - all employees in the garment business - return for this laugh-filled 2001 sequel. At the center of the farce are Dov (Gad Elmaleh), Patrick (Gilbert Melki), Serge (Jose Garcia), Yvan (Bruno Solo) and Eddie (Richard Anconina), friends for life and colleagues in the said industry, who spend their days wheeling and dealing and establishing connections but run the socioeconomic gamut from filthy rich to lower working class. A series of misunderstandings commences when blue-collar Serge - employed as a motorcycle messenger and living with his parents - takes the wealthy Patrick's blue Rolls Royce convertible out on an errand and runs headfirst into Chochana (Elisa Tovati), a Jewish girl with whom he feels instantly smitten. She naturally assumes, given the car, that he's wealthy - and he of course does nothing to discourage this. In time, Serge manages to prolong the economic ruse to such a degree that he ends up engaged to the high-maintenance Chocana, and on a headfirst collision course with her furniture kingpin father (Enrico Macias). Meanwhile, the garment industry as a whole in Le Sentier (the chief Parisian neighborhood in which the men do business) suffers from a massive economic downturn, thanks in no small part to escalating labor costs and the flourishing of Internet start-ups; in desperation, Yvan and Eddie turn to EuroDiscount, a massive chain of European department stores, with a feeble attempt to sell their merchandise to that outfit. They fail to count, however, on the ugly reaction of the cunning manager, Vierhouten (Daniel Prevost), which threatens to send them spiraling toward bankruptcy. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

In this sly comedy of manners, Anne (Victoria Abril) is a free-spirited single mother whose three children were all fathered by different men, none of whom are currently in contact with Anne and none of whom know that Anne bore their offspring. Anne's son Victor (Pierre-Jean Cherit) has started asking his mother questions about who his father is and where he's gone; Anne, however, isn't sure just what to tell him, or any of his siblings, about their Dads without things becoming embarrassing. However, when Anne takes the kids on a vacation to Mexico, she realizes she'd better come up with an explanation and quick, since all three of her former beaux happen to be staying at the same resort where Anne and her brood are registered. Mon père, ma mère, mes frères et mes soeurs was the first directorial credit for actress Charlotte de Turckheim, who also appears in the film as Jeanne. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

French filmmaker Manuel Boursinhac directs this bleak, gritty film about addiction and redemption. Fledging writer Eric (Vincent Elbaz) and his girlfriend (Laurence Cote) consort with junkie thieves. After getting busted by the cops for drug possession, he chooses to enter rehab over going to prison. Helped by his sympathetic roommate and his writing muse, Eric finds temporary relief from the pain of withdrawal. Un pur moment de rock 'n' roll was screened at the 1999 San Sebastian Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi

As visually stylish as it is graphically violent, this thriller directed by Luc Besson concerns Mathilda (Natalie Portman), a 12-year-old girl living in New York City who has been exposed to the sordid side of life from an early age: her family lives in a slum and her abusive father works for drug dealers, cutting and storing dope. Mathilda doesn't much care for her parents, but she has a close bond with her four-year-old brother. One day, she returns from running an errand to discover that most of her family, including her brother, have been killed in a raid by corrupt DEA agents, led by the psychotic Stansfield (Gary Oldman). Mathilda takes refuge in the apartment of her secretive neighbor, Leon (Jean Reno), who takes her in with a certain reluctance. She discovers that Leon is a professional assassin, working for Tony (Danny Aiello), a mob kingpin based in Little Italy. Wanting to avenge the death of her brother, Mathilda makes a deal with Leon to become his protégée in exchange for work as a domestic servant, hoping to learn the hitman's trade and take out the men who took her brother's life. However, an affection develops between Leon and Mathilda that changes his outlook on his life and career. Besson's first American film boasted a strong performance from Jean Reno, a striking debut by Natalie Portman, and a love-it-or-hate-it, over-the-top turn by Gary Oldman. Léon was originally released in the U.S. in 1994 as The Professional, with 26 minutes cut in response to audience preview tests. Those 26 minutes were restored in the director's preferred cut, released in 1996 in France as Léon: Version Intégrale and in the U.S. on DVD as Léon: The Professional in 2000. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Filmed on location "Somewhere in France", this umpteenth version of Dumas' The Corsican Brothers stars the zoned-out comedy team of Cheech and Chong. Perhaps inspired by the Ritz Bros.' spin on The Three Musketeers, the duo retains enough of the original story (about twin brothers who feel one another's pain) to keep the plot going, but try to inject their own peculiar brand of humor throughout. The film's highlight is a duel with two loaves of stale bread. Yes, that's the highlight. Just as the 1930s comedy team of Wheeler and Woolsey lost their audience when they dropped their risque humor and Prohibition gags, so too do Cheech and Chong falter when not indulging in the drug-oriented comedy which made them famous in the early 1970s. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi