La cité de la peur (1994) Reviews

• La cité de la joie!!!

  missmarmite2002-04-13

  Having "discovered" Alain Chabat only a couple of days ago I didn't know if I would like this film, despite all the other good comments it got. This is because I don't speak French. I watched the French version with English subtitles, because it wasn't available with German ones. And I can deeply assure everyone who thinks about seeing this piece of art: Do it! It's hilarious, wild, crazy and above all French! After only five minutes into the film I had tears of laughter running down my cheek. I think nobody will fail to notice the huge amount of jokes in this film, if you know any French or not. Most of the comedy is of physical nature, there are of course some puns but never mind. Just go and see it. Or better buy it instantly as you will want to see it over and over again! I promise!

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• the city of laugh: a successful comedy

  dbdumonteil2002-08-28

  This is "Les Nuls"'s first movie and if it isn't a masterpiece, it's an enjoyable comedy. Odile Deray is the press attaché for the film "Red Is Dead" but the film is so dumb that reporters don't want to promote it. However, the projectionist is killed and due to this it creates a great publicity around the movie and meanwhile murders go on. Then Deray is asking a cop (Serge Karamasov) to protect not only the projectionists but also the main star of the film: Simon Jérémi.... Alain Berbérian and "Les Nuls" have made a funny film which is full of clever visuals and ringing brainwaves; the best example is the murder of the fourth projectionist when "Les Nuls" are adding the sound effects to the scene themselves! Moreover, the comic of the film is very fanciful and there are some useless elements but it's because they are useless that they are funny. For example, we learn Patrick Bialès's whole life (the main inspector of Cannes) but it brings nothing to the plot! The screenplay, in spite of several weaknesses, is inspired and full of numerous details and sentences that score the bull's eye. The movie is well made thanks to its actors too and I am under the impression that they, voluntarily, don't take themselves seriously , especially Gérard Darmon who is irresistible in his first appearance when he answers the reporters in several languages! Even famous French actors have got a small role (Tcheky Karyo, Daniel Gélin, Jean-Pierre Bacri and Eddy Mitchell are in the projectionists' roles)! At last the film is obviously a parody of horror and detective films. I think about "Psycho" when the projectionists are killed. To sum up: a fanciful but efficient comedy and if you watch it for the first time, you might be disappointed. You have to watch it several times to appreciate it. It happened with me.

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• I just love it

  rizthon2009-08-22

  This for sure is my favorite movie. What I really love is that there are jokes, puns, movie references & all almost all the time, and that, unlike in a lot of big production movies, can easily go by unnoticed. That's why even if I've seen this movie tons of times, I still can find some new ones. That's also why some people say you should watch it several times to really find it funny. Actually the best thing to do is to watch it with the remote in your hand, to be able to pause at any time to read all the stupid things that have been hidden. I don't know about the translation, but I bet watching it in any other language than French must ruin quite a lot of puns. Also I don't know whether all the stuffs written in the different scenes are also translated. I know a lot of people who just like me have watched that movie over and over and know most of the script by heart, and would from time to time repeat some of it in real life. You can also find tons of references of the movie all over the Internet, in blogs and comments. On the other hand, I know of people who just find that movie quite poor, without any interest, and I can understand them. The jokes are quite often stupid like "(showing a picture) Is this your husband?" "No it's my dog." "Oh yeah, of course...Talk to me about him." "He was a really nice dog..." "No, about your husband". Of course it's stupid to ask whether the dog is her husband, and of course it's stupid to tell about the dog. So some people will definitely find this movie stupid, but others, like me, will like it. Just a note about the jokes: they may be stupid, but unlike in some movies, they are not gross. So eventually, if you're French or have a really good French level, and feel like the previous joke can indeed be funny, you definitely have to watch that movie. If you find it lame, don't. As for if you don't speak French but still find that joke funny, well, just keep in mind the movie won't be as funny as it should be, but it should still be quite funny.

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• A really funny typical French comedy

  hbbio2001-01-20

  La cité de la peur is a really funny movie. It's funny because of the good acting, the solid script. The scenario itself is a joke. I'm writing this comment in English but could have done it in French, since many gags must be impossible to translate, so you definitely should understand French. This movie shows the particular sense of humour of "Les Nuls", a group of humorists, which I do like. To my mind, it's the best French comedy since "Le père Noël est une ordure", which will make you laugh from start to end.

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• simply the best comedy

  efbieaye2002-01-09

  There is a joke every 5 seconds, this is one of the best comedy I'have ever seen. Even thinking at this movie make me laugh. I have seen it 5 times and i still enjoy seeing it. If you can see this movie, see it. my rating : 10