Brandon Judell
Bon Voyage
"Bon Voyage", directed by Jean-Paul
Rappeneau
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Music: Gabriel Yared
Artistic Collaboration: Chantal Pernecker
Cast: Isabelle Adjani, Gerard Depardieu, Virginie Ledoyen, Gregori Derangere,
Peter Coyote, Pierre Larouche, Patrick Medioni
Are you ready for a World War II, romantic, murder-in-Act-One, escape-from-the-Nazis, French farce? If so, "Bon Voyage" pretty much fills the bill.
But you should be warned that not unlike certain uneven, complexly plotted comedies of the sixties (e.g. "What's New Pussycat"), this one runs pretty much on star power. So if you're a Depardieu or Adjani fanatic, you'll undoubtedly be in pure bliss.
Starting off in Paris, this tale commences when superstar Viviane (Adjani) "accidentally" kills a rich entrepreneur blackmailing her in her very own apartment. With no where to turn, Viviane phones up the man who's adored her since they were children, the budding novelist Frederic (Derangere). The naive gent agrees to remove the body out of love, only to find himself hours later in prison, jailed as a callous killer.
Thankfully, the Germans are invading so Frederic has a chance to escape and track down Viviane to clear his name. But before he can do so, he gets involved with a beautiful young student (Ledoyen) who's helping a Jewish scientist escape to England along with containers of "heavy" water that can be used to produce atomic bombs.
Meanwhile in a seaside town, as the government is falling into chaos, Viviane is having an affair with a French politician (Depardieu), and Frederic's former prison mate is in town smuggling wine. And that's not half the story.
Thankfully, director/co-writer Rappeneau, who's helmed the Oscar-nominated Cyrano de Bergerac (1990), keeps all the silly activity going at a runaway pace. But he'd be nowhere without the handsome, Cary-Grant-esque Derangere and the sprightly Ledoyen earning our sympathies.
In the end, "Bon Voyage" is not a bad trip to take. But if you've imbibed a few glass of champagne beforehand, you'll have that much more an enjoyable journey.[Judell]
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