Adieu Berthe France 2012 – 100min.

Movie Rating

Adieu Berthe

Movie Rating: Agathe Tissier

Berthe has died, leaving her grandson with questions about her last wishes.

Adieu Berthe... But who was Berthe really? Forgotten in an old folks home far from Paris, she took with her secrets of her youth and her wishes about what to do with her remains. Her grandson (Denis Podalydès) will have to decide: burial or cremation? He also has to decide whether to leave his wife (Isabelle Candelier) or his mistress (Valérie Lemercier), whether to go to his grandmother's funeral or the birthday party of his companion's daughter. As he tries to find out who his grandma was, this pharmacist and amateur magician starts questioning his own person. The affair that Berthe had with an illusionist before she met his grandfather opens his eyes to the tricks his own existence is playing on him...

Although it contains all the ingredients for a slapstick look at the surrealistic world of funerals, there is not enough spice in this comedy by the brothers Denis & Bruno Podalydès. Once the surprise of the ridiculousness that is the death industry has passed, there isn't enough content left to hold the tempo until the end. A promising start and a dreary ending – kind of like the lives of most people on earth.

04.07.2012

3

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