The Closet [DVD] [2001]

François Pignon (Daniel Auteuil) is a nothing of a man who learns through the office grapevine that he is about to be fired from his job in the accounting department of a condom company. Since his wife divorced him and his son will have nothing to do with him, this could well be the last straw. But he encounters a new neighbor, Belone (Michel Aumont), who comes up with a plan. They will doctor somephotographs to make it look like Pignon is gay and make the company think twice about firing him and suffering from bad publicity. This ploy works although Pignon does NOTHING different at work; apparently everybody sees exactly what they expect to see when they look at him, even if they now expect something completely different. Meanwhile, Félix Santini (Gérard Depardieu) is warned that he will have to be nice to the gay guy and stop making intolerant comments or his job will be on the line. Of course, everybody starts treating the "new" Pignon quite differently from the old, which has both good and bad consequences for our hero. However, Mlle Bertrand (Michèle Laroque) becomes suspicious about the photographs and everything that is happening.

Earlier this week I had watched "Unfaithful," another in a long line of Hollywood remakes of French films and I found myself thinking about whether "The Closet" might be Americanized at some future date. Although this happened with "La Cage aux folles" I tend to think this film will avoid that fate. There is a subtlety to the humor here that would be lost in translation if the film were redone. I particularly fear that the darker side of this film, would not be able to avoid darker manifestations of hate and violence in an American version. You will just have to live with sitting down and watching this film in French and reading the subtitles. Besides, if you saw and liked "La Cage aux folles" then you should enjoy what Veber has come up with this time around.

In a nutshell, this smart and cleverly-made film follows François Pignon (Auteuil), a boring 'Dilbert'-type accountant who, with the help of a new next door neighbour, pretends that he is gay in order to save his job, and the following effects on his bewildered colleagues (especially the homophobic rugby player Félix Santini), his ex-wife and estranged son. The main setting of a (very hi-tech looking) rubber factory and the dominating physique of Depardieu provides some hysterical moments. Indeed, fans of Depardieu will probably appreciate this his most enjoyable role since that of the romantic comedy Green Card, without dampening his achievements in more 'serious' movies.

The film uses various stereotypes (though none I would believe anyone would find offensive and avoiding the traditional 'camp' comedy) digging into the craziness of bureaucracy related to philosophies of politically-correctness within organizations and society. With reference to this, highlights include Pignon

The DVD includes trailers and cast and crew biographies, enough for a superb, first-class film which is worth buying just for itself alone. C'est magnifique!