Camille Japy Movies

In this Kafkaesque look at the injustices of modern life, Tres Bien, Merci follows an accountant named Alex who catches the eye of authorities for the minor infraction of lighting up his cigarette just a few feet shy of the smoking area near the subway. Guards force him to pay an exorbitant fine, but Alex's breaking of minor rules earns an even more disproportionately harsh punishment when police throw him in jail overnight simply for loitering to watch an I.D. check being performed on a young couple. As things become maddeningly more absurd, he's later imprisoned in a mental institution simply for rationally pleading his defense. Throughout Tres Bien, Merci, Alex's excruciatingly lucid state of mind contrasts with the increasingly insane reactions of authority figures, illustrating the indignities of society. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide

A novelist, an actress, and a struggling young singer all attempt to make their mark in modern day Paris in director Marc Fitoussi's cynical entertainment industry satire. Bertrand (Denis Podalydes) is a French literary professor whose students all know that he is shacked up with pretty math teacher Solange (Valerie Benguigui) despite the couple's best efforts to keep their relationship under the radar. Though no one in the school much cares for Bertrand's prose, self-flagellating student Frederic (Gregoire Leprince-Ringuet) is the one notable exception. Meanwhile, as Bertrand struggles to deliver his second novel, recent big city arrival Cora (Emilie Dequenne) finds that her fondness for outmoded songwriters may be having an adverse effect on her career trajectory. While Cora struggles to make ends meet by working at a popular chain steakhouse, even this attempt to remain afloat ultimately proves disastrous. Somewhere in another part of town, embittered actress Alice (Sandrine Kiberlain) resents the fact that she is consistently passed over for "real" film roles after accepting work as an anime voiceover artist. Yet despite the fact that Alice resents her drama school classmate Annabella (Camille Japy) due to the latter's success on the legit stage, Annabella has her own problems as evidenced by her troubled relationships with her nephew and sister. Later, the engineer for Alice's dubbing session eventually works up the muster to speak her mind, and Cora begins to sense that her luck is finally turning after a chance encounter with veteran songwriter Joseph Costals (Jean-Pierre Kalfon). ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

French filmmaker Philippe Le Guay writes and directs the ensemble comedy Le Cout de la Vie (The Cost of Living). Set in the city of Lyon over a period of a few days, the film reveals people's relationship to money through the intersecting lives of several characters. Fabrice Luchini plays the wealthy Brett, who likes to hang on tightly to his money, while Vincent Lindon plays the generous Coway, who has spent way more than he earns. Geraldine Pailhas plays Helena, a high-class escort with expensive tastes, while Isild Le Besco plays a down-to-earth young heiress who cares more about love than money. Meanwhile powerful businessman Nicolas de Blamond (Claude Rich) puts loads of people out of work when he shuts down his factories after he learns of his failing heath. The Cost of Living was shown at the 2003 Locarno International Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

As the title would suggest, this film, directed by Frederic Schoendoerffer, is a noirish crime drama about two forensic cops on the trail of serial murderer. Georges Fabian (Charles Berling) and Jean-Louis Gomez (Andre Dussollier) are put on the case when Marie -- the teenaged daughter of a couple who own a roadside cafe -- vanishes the day after the family dog disappears. Georges' schoolteacher wife is expecting their first child, while Jean-Louis' spouse walked out on him days after their daughter left home. The two discover a magazine daubed with Marie's blood in the eatery's lobby, and with the help of a police dog, they discover a canine corpse across the street. Later, when the bodies of a young white woman and a black man are unearthed sans heads and hands, Georges and Jean-Louis think that they have at last found Marie. In fact, they've hit upon a ritual murder similar to a series of killings that baffled the Belgian police in 1993. The two then begin to doggedly gather clues and witnesses. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

When the Cat's Away is a gentle French comedy that explores the problems and anxieties of contemporary urbanites. When Chloe (Garance Clavel), a young Parisian, decides to take a long-overdue vacation, she has to find someone to look after Gris-Gris, her beloved cat. Everyone, including her gay male roommate, refuses to help her, but she finally makes an arrangement with the elderly Madame Renée (Renée Le Calm), who often watches over other peoples' cats and dogs. However, when Chloe comes back, Madame Renée tells her that unfortunately the cat has been lost, and the unlucky owner goes on a search for her dear animal friend. While looking for the cat, she meets many colorful characters who populate the neighborhood. ~ Yuri German, All Movie Guide