Very Happy Alexander | |
---|---|
Directed by | Yves Robert |
Written by | Yves Robert |
Starring | Philippe Noiret |
Distributed by | Films de la Colombe Madeleine Films La Guéville |
Release date
|
9 February 1968 (France) 17 February 1969 (U.S.) 21 December 1973 (West Germany) |
Running time
|
100 min |
Country | France |
Language | French |
Box office | $16,645,537 |
Very Happy Alexander (French: Alexandre le bienheureux, "Blissful Alexander") is a 1968 French comedy film, directed by Yves Robert, starring Philippe Noiret, Marlène Jobert and Françoise Brion. This was comic actor Pierre Richard's second appearance on film, playing a secondary role toward the end of the plot.
The film has been released on DVD on 4 May 2004.
Philippe Noiret plays a henpecked childless farmer that lives oppressed by his authoritarian and materialistic wife, being the only worker in his farm. Whenever he attempts to take a small rest, indulge in any distraction, or simply falls asleep out of exhaustion, there she is chasing him to move on. When she and her elderly parents are killed in a car accident, he decides that the time has come to take it easy and enjoy life a little, sets all his livestock free, and then practically disappears. The only clue that he is still alive is his dog, who periodically goes shopping to the nearby town with a basket in its mouth. Concerns about Alexander's fate are the center of the town's gossip. After several attempts, a delegation sent by the citizens finds he has retired—to his bed. This creates no small social upheaval in this working-class small French town where hard work is regarded as a virtue, and hence his attitude is viewed as a scandal and a menace.