La Vérité si je mens ! 2

I didn't bother going to see this one at the cinéma as I had heard all sorts of comments about the low level finesse of the humour ... however I rented the Dvd recently and found the film quite entertaining. In fact my wife who is Algerian born French and who had seen the number one found the number two better than the number one, now that's unusual isn't it. The film is basically about the Jewish "pieds noirs" ( ex-inhabitants of the Algerian French and their descendants ) ; various comic situations arise when the family of clothiers try to sell models to a clothing discount store, called Euro Discount ( how original ) and who's boss is none other than Daniel Prévost, who played the tax inspector "Cheval" in Le Diner des Cons. Anyway there's a lot of fast-talking and pied-noir humour, as well as some romance, lots of lying ( hence the title ) and beautiful women. It really was a pleasant surprise, and I loved the performance by José Garcia who at one stage has to pass off for an irate ouzbeck buyer to a Tunisian clothers factory. Anyway there's a reasonable plot so the story and I would recommend the DVD. In addition to that, a rare thing on French Dvd's, there are English subtitles for non French-Speakers. A most laudable addition !

If I lie that's the truth!?

I am not sure if that's the reality but I found it sincere. If you have seen the film you can understand what I mean. "La vérité si je mens" is a comedy film pointing that people sometimes need to play games even if they are not good at playing or "acting".

In this sequel to the huge hit "La vérité si je mens", we're back to the little Jewish community of the Sentier, a Parisian district specialised in textiles. While the first movie focussed on the sentimental and comedic adventures of Eddie (a goy trying to pass for a Jew though totally ignorant of Jewish traditions), the sequel is more about Eddie's friends, a colorful bunch of fast-talking, hot-tempered entrepreneurs who love nothing more than fast cars, fast women, glittering watches and flashy clothes. For the millions of people who saw the first episode, there's little new here : the same (or almost) characters return to their well-oiled roles and punchlines. Still, it's a better sequel than most. First, it has a story that is appropriate to our times: the little Davids of the Sentier are fighting a giant Goliath - a big supermarket chain, and their final vengeance is fun and inventive. Second, there's more room for detail and character definition. Particularly, José Garcia as Serge, the mythomaniac, pathetic loser of the team, is given a lot of screen time and makes a memorable impression (and, like Ben Stiller, he has a lot of hard time "Meeting the parents" !). Third, it's fast-paced and quite funny. In some way, it's hard to describe such a movie to non-French people as the community presented here cannot be found elsewhere. It is also close to impossible to translate, too, as most of the fun is in the "typical" slang (like the title itself). Here's a comparison that comes to mind : take the comedic moments of Italo-American gangster sagas (like Goodfellas or the Sopranos), keep the colorful language but replace handguns by yarmulkes !

To call "Would I Lie to You 2" a sequel wouldn't prepare you to how good it is, this is not a continuation but an improvement. The first film needed time to set the tone and the characters, to show the starting point of Eddie (Richard Anconina) and it sure didn't call for laughs. But in the second, there's no time to waste for exposition, everyone, and everything is settled, and the story takes off rapidly and efficiently. Time is money, right?

We meet Eddie, followed by Ivan (Bruno Solo) and Dov, Gad El Maleh replaced Vincent Elbaz in the role, he was THE rising star in 2001 and the only one who could replace the handsome Elbaz without distracting from the story. The business isn't doing well, and it's time to think big, to deal with the big players, the retail industry. Dov is reluctant but as a clear-sighted businessman, Eddie understands it's time to get out of the comfort zone and deal with a retailer, Denis Vierhouten, played by Daniel Prevost, an unequaled comedic actor when it comes to bad guys. and he sure is memorable in this one.

Meanwhile, Serge Benamou (Jose Garcia) is woken by his mother, an important phone call from his cousin Patrick Abitbol (Gilvert Melki). Gladys Cohen plays serge's mother, she was Dov's mother in the first, but her scene-stealing performance owned her a second apparition and she was given even more smile-inducing material in this one. After the film, she would become the ultimate Jewish loving mother of French cinema. Serge must take care of Patrick's girlfriend in his absence, he can use the Royce and take her wherever he wants (touching her is highly frowned upon), this is the kind of offer a Serge can't refuse. And what do you know the Rolls Royce allows him to make a good impression on the beautiful Shoshana (Elisa Tovati).

As for the little favor, well I won't spoil the way the evening ends but only reveal on one of my favorite exchanges in the film when Patrick cancels Serge's debt, probably lost in translation. Serge enthusiastically asks if he really starts from scratch, which can be literally translated as 'starting from zero', to which Patrick says 'no, we stay at zero'. Every important scene in "Would I Lie to You 2" ends with similar punch lines, another one involves a nasty prank call, with Serge again as the usual punching ball. The tone is really set after twenty minutes; these guys have their own problems but never at the expenses of friendship and having a good time.

But big problems start flowing when Serge tries to keep his wealthy profile to impress Shoshana, when Patrick goes to a trip to a L.A, he uses his car and house. but realizing that he blocked his account, he must resort to some illegal schemes with a small time crook named Willy, of course, it's only a matter of time before it backfires. Meanwhile the unfaithful Dov, kicked off the marital house, goes to L.A. with Patrick and lets Ivan keep an eye of Karine (Aure Atika). We see the problem coming, but this is nothing compared to what Eddie goes through. By dealing with a big player, he realizes that their scheming are in the same scale.

Eddie's contract is canceled because of defective goods, he loses all the money he invested, the forensic examination sides with Vierhounten right, it is obvious that the legal expert and Eddie's banker are parts of the schemes, so it's the downfall for Eddie who might welcome his third child, a son, in an empty house. The film is basically divided in three acts, the first one show everyone dealing with their private business alone, the second comes to a point where everything is jeopardized even their lives, but it's in the third act that the film unfolds its genius.

Indeed, "Would I Lie to You 2" is all about seeing things big, so it needed a bigger plot, literally, the greatest con-vengeance ever concocted since "The Sting". Eddie proves again his capability to strike back, but for that he needs to be credible in the first move, which means Patrick must start the game, he'll have to convince Denis to invest in some Tunisian low-price manufacturer. Dov will play the manager but they need a fourth player and this is Serge's finest hour opportunity, he's not given any part but the biggest of all, and the way he plays it again proves that sometimes in life, the more balls you show, the bigger the outcomes is.

Like the first one, "Would I Lie to You 2" doesn't question the notion of lying when it comes to opportunities, there's a moment where Eddie asks Serge why he didn't tell the truth to Shoshana, his answer shows that there's no cynicism or malice in these guys. They're just average men who're never as good and when they combine their forces, this time against their most redoubtable adversary, and the ending is even more emotionally rewarding because they've made a spectacular recovery, one they owed to the most underestimate of the group. In the end, they have more respect for each other, more self-esteem, like in a good coming-of-age story.

This is not just a wonderful sequel but a wonderful buddy comedy. Even the actors never have been as successful as when they played together In my review of Gad El Maleh's "Coco", I said that his humor relied too much on the play on words due to Mediterranean accents, in "Would I Le to You 2", there's only one based on that and it is hilarious, but the film also uses misunderstanding, visual gags, comedy of contrasts, with a good dose of satire, friendship, and naturally, business. Who said there was no friendship is business? Maybe the same schmuck who said money couldn't buy love.

In 1997, the movie "la vérité si je mens" was released and had a huge success, so it was almost inevitable that it was followed by a sequel and this happened 4 years later. But this sequel is a pleasant surprise because it's more successful and better than the first film. Besides, I'm amazed that it's only rated 6.6/10. As far as this sequel is concerned, it's full of good surprises: to start obviously with the actors who are all amazing and they've got punch ( the palm would surely go to José Garcia). The first movie mainly focused on Richard Anconina's life and feelings and tended to neglect the other actors but here these actors have got more calibre and more liberty (in some parts of the movie, they're even the main actors). So the movie is well-regulated. It's necessary to say that the minor actors are wisely chosen: the thrilled Enrico Macias, the sly Daniel Prévost.... Moreover, there aren't any injuries times so you don't get bored at all. Dialogues are rippling and hit the bull's eye, several gags are irresistible although a bit predictable and let's add a lively rhythm. At the end, it's a dynamic and vibrating movie. It's worth watching!