Albert Delpy Movies

A bored and dispirited man heads out for a new adventure in this French comedy-drama from filmmakers Benoit Delépine and Gustave de Kervern. Serge (Gerard Depardieu), nicknamed "Mammuth" by his friends for the old motorcycle he's owned for years, began working at a slaughterhouse when he was sixteen years old; a model worker, Serge never had a sick day or was laid off, and shortly after turning sixty he's given a retirement party by his fellow employees. After spending nearly his entire adult life at the same job, Serge isn't sure what to do with his free time, but he soon discovers a snag in his retirement plans -- several former employees at the slaughterhouse neglected to fill out the proper paperwork, and until they sign the appropriate forms he won't receive his pension. Hoping to make the best of a bad situation and give Serge something to do at the same time, his wife Catherine (Yolande Moreau) suggests he pull his old motorcycle out of the garage and take a road trip to round up the needed signatures. Serge takes her advice, but as he catches up with his old friends, he discovers how little they think of him, and he's haunted by the spirit of Yasmine (Isabelle Adjani), a beautiful girl he used to love. Serge later finds a traveling companion in Solange (Miss Ming), his free-spirited niece; Solange is an artist who along with her friends encourages Serge to open himself up to his creative side that he's ignored most of his life. Mammuth was an official selection at the 2010 Berlin International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Ingenue Julie Delpy does triple duty as writer, director, and star of this romantic comedy. French photographer Marion (Delpy) and American interior designer Jack (Adam Goldberg) are returning from a vacation in Venice. Despite the fact that it was supposed to be the ultimate romantic getaway, disagreements and misunderstandings seemed to drive them farther apart rather than bringing them closer together. Before they return to the United States, Marion and Jack have a quick two-day stop in Paris to visit Marion's parents and pick up the cat that they had been pet-setting for their daughter. Unfortunately for Jack, Paris proves to be quite a culture shock. Not only are Marion's parents a pair of eccentric former "revolutionaries" who make no qualms about having knock-down-drag-out arguments regardless of who's present, but they also appear to have a particular distaste for Americans. Add to this the fact that Marion's friends hold nothing back when it comes to discussing their sexual lives, seem fixated on food rituals, and that Marion seems to run into former lovers on every street corner, and Jack quickly begins to suspect that he doesn't know his girlfriend half as well as he thought he did when they were living the simple life back in New York. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Directed by Rémi Waterhouse, Mille Millièmes is centered around an eccentric ensemble of apartment residents. Kindness is noticeably absent among their quarters, as demonstrated by a dating pair of neighbors (Jean-Pierre Darroussin and Valérie Stroh) whose request to have their apartments connected was flatly denied. To make matters worse, beggars gathering at a charity event are cruelly tormented by various tenants during the Christmas season. Last but not least is the Portuguese concierge (Luis Rego) whose services are in danger of being replaced by a more cost-effective alternative, and a widow whose recent loss earns her no sympathy from the rent-demanding landlords. ~ Tracie Cooper, Rovi

A satirical examination of the transformation of a French investment bank into a Hollywood power broker, Le Sens des Affaires begins with a lowly bank clerk's embezzlement of $104 million francs (about $14 million dollars) to finance his screen adaptation of Chekhov's Three Sisters. The clerk, Gerard Dutillard (Guy-Philippe Bertin, who also wrote and directed), funnels bank funds into three fictional affiliates in a way that makes the bank's president, Jean-Francois de Roquemorel (Fedor Atkine), legally responsible. Financial ruin seems a distinct possibility, but Dutillard has worked out a plan to make the system work in his favor, and soon enough his banking superiors are doing their best to salvage his film and make it marketable, prompting actual investors to fuel the production with cash. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi

Richard Linklater's third feature -- set, like his other works, over the course of one 24-hour period -- Before Sunrise is a sweet, intelligent romantic comedy filmed primarily in Austria. It stars Ethan Hawke as Jesse, a young American travelling through Europe. On a train he meets Celine, a French student portrayed by Julie Delpy. Together they leave the train to begin exploring the city of Vienna, walking and talking into the wee hours of the night and slowly falling in love as the minutes before Jesse's return to the U.S. tick away. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi

Martin (Remi Martin) is a shy baker's assistant with a stutter who has a penchant for felines and fast cars. He is building a car in his garage, oblivious to the fact that when it is completed he will not be able to drive it out of the structure. The kind-hearted Martin takes in Camille (Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu), a chic junkie he hides in the garage. Love blossoms between the unlikely duo, and Camille is soon impregnated. She is able to escape the deadly lifestyle, and Martin finally escapes the grip of his harridan shrew of a mother (Monique Chaumette). ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

Fred Segal (Richard Anconina) is a commercial director whose marriage is headed for disaster in this light romantic comedy drama. He decides he wants to play music and takes flute lessons from the beautiful Isabelle (Anemone). The experience wakens feelings of romance in Fred he thought were long-since dead, and soon he must chose between his wife and his musical teacher. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

This unflinching, provocative drama is set in the slums of Gay Paree, where dwells the dregs and fringe of French society. There Miss Mona, an aging drag queen, dreams of becoming a real woman before he dies. Unfortunately, an old lover stole all the money he was saving so he could become a she instead. Miss Mona finally gets his chance to earn more cash when he meets a destitute young Arab, an illegal immigrant. The queen takes the Arab in and convinces the destitute and desperate youth that he will make enough money to buy immigration papers if he becomes a prostitute. The Arab reluctantly agrees to it, but does not realize that the money he grits his teeth to earn is actually going to pay for Mona's dream surgery. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Racism and the games people play with it aren't unique to the U.S. by any means. In this French comedy, Rachid, a nice-looking Arab boy, plays with the pervasive fear of non-whites in Paris by having two friends approach pretty girls while looking as sinister as they can, so that he can "rescue" them and strike up an acquaintance. When he and Denis, a black West Indies man, find themselves in pursuit of the same girl, oddly enough, they become best friends. They team up in order to try and persuade the girl's parents that they are respectable enough to rent an apartment from them. However, as any person of color knows, this is far more easily said than done wherever race (and class) are issues. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Although purporting to be a children's film, this film has an excess of adult language, violence, and sexual innuendo. The story is about the uneasy relationship between Antoine (Paul Crauchet) an elderly, somewhat anti-social man crippled by a landmine explosion, and his young roommate, Alain (Albert Delpy). There is a growing animosity between the two men (spurred on by disputes over a pet canary) that the obnoxious behavior of Alain, a practical joker and a womanizer, does not alleviate. Since this seems to be the kind of relationship that most adults would like to avoid at all costs, it is difficult to understand how it was meant to entertain children. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi