Michel Galabru Movies

Asterix and Obelix, the French comic book heroes created by René Goscinny and Albert Underzo (their adventures have sold 280 million copies to date in Europe), are brought to the big screen in their first live-action adventure. Set in 50 B.C., Asterix (Christian Clavier) and Obelix (Gérard Depardieu) are a pair of comedic heroes living in a small but well-protected village in Gaul, where a magic potion concocted by Druids turns the townsfolk into mighty soldiers. When Roman troops carve a path through Gaul to reach the English Channel, Caesar (Gottfried John) and his aide de camp Detritus (Roberto Benigni) discover the secret elixir and capture the Druid leader who knows its formula, and Asterix and Obelix are sent off to rescue them. Shot in Brittany, Bavaria, and Arpajon, Asterix et Obelix Contre Cesar brings these cartoon characters to life on a grand scale; it was reportedly the most expensive French-language film ever, at a cost of 274 million francs ($48 million). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

A man born and raised on France's Southern coast is exiled to the Northern territories in this comedy from actor, director and screenwriter Dany Boon. Philippe Abrams (Kad Merad) helps run the post office in a picturesque small town in the South of France. Philippe's wife Julie (Zoe Felix) has been down in the dumps, and he thinks one way to lift her spirits would be to relocate to the more glamorous surroundings of the Cote d'Azur. However, Philippe's attempts to finagle a transfer fail, and he ends up demoted -- he's sent to Bergues, a village in Northern France stuck between Belgium and England. Philippe is appalled at the news, and matters only get worse when he has to learn the local dialect, a strange bouillabaisse of French, Flemish and Latin dialects. Julie opts to stay behind, and as Philippe drowns his sorrows in beer on his first night in town, he nearly runs over a man while driving home drunk -- who turns out to be one of his new colleagues at the post office, Antoine Bailleul (Dany Boon). But Philippe finds to his surprise that he enjoys life in Bergues, and he becomes infatuated with Annabelle (Anne Marivin), a beautiful letter carrier. Philippe is pondering just what he should do about his feelings for Annabelle when he gets word from Julie that she's decided to join him in the unfashionable North. Bienvenue Chez Les Ch'tis was a major box office success in France, grossing over $80 million in little more than a month in theaters. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

In this comedy, an Italian man in Paris is looking for his wife who has walked out on him. However, before he can get very far in his search, he is coaxed by his boisterous, boozy male friends into taking time out for a carouse. Afterward, he resumes his search, and he and his wife come to an understanding. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

The independently-minded daughter of lower-middle class French shopkeepers, Brigitte, one of three sisters, refused to marry the father of her child when she became pregnant. In this film, she reminisces about her family life beginning when she was about five years old, up to the present when she is in her early 20s. Of her two sisters, one has a nervous breakdown and the other one becomes something of a baby factory. Colorful anecdotes of her eventful life lend additional depth to her insights. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

The universally recognized topic of this light comedy is the struggle between refusing to fall in love only to be rejected, and falling in love, regardless. After a computer operator (Richard Bohringer) has been through a painful relationship, he is determined to look the other way every time any interesting woman enters his life. He has his other loves -- photography and model planes -- to challenge him anyway, though his mother is not about to understand how a model plane can replace a woman in his life. One day, a car breaks down in front of his house, and a young mother (Catherine Frot) with her 10-year-old daughter (Anne Clignet) come in looking for assistance. The daughter is endearing and would make a terrific subject for a photo contest. As both the young mother and the computer operator studiously ignore the flicker of romantic sparks, it is only a matter of time before the flame either grows or is extinguished.
~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

In this satirical French comedy, Rosemunde (Annie Girardot) earns her living selling relics to the Catholic church. She manufactures them using a specialized machine made by her grandfather, which transforms corpses into bone. Needless to say, since she must have dead bodies in order to do this, the police take an interest in her affairs. In order to fend off their inquiries, she concocts a scheme using a hippyish Jesus-cultist, who is a dead-ringer for conventional notions of how Jesus looked. To everyone's surprise, he has some supernatural gifts of his own. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Gerard Louvier (Gerard Lanvin), a young criminal trying to stay a few steps ahead of a police manhunt, winds up with Julie Boucher (Miou-Miou), a journalist searching out another story -- who thinks he is an up-and-coming judge with leads on her own case. The confusion is a catalyst for some misunderstandings and general uproar, before the different protagonists sort themselves out and their untenable situation is resolved. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

A traveling theater troupe is divided by the romantic unrest of several couples in this sometimes macabre and uneven comedy drama. Baptiste (Guy Marchand) is the troupe's director who finds his creativity has been drained and who is in the process of splitting with his actress-wife Sarah (Caroline Cellier). Baptiste becomes friends with novelty-shop owner Charlie (Michel Galabru) -- who is later hacked to death by his wife Germaine (Marie Duboise) before she ends her own life by slashing her wrists. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide