''Camping Cosmos'' is a 1996 Belgian satirical comedy film and a sequel to ''

La Vie sexuelle des Belges 1950-1978 LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on Figure 8 ( ...

'', directed by the same director:

Jan Bucquoy Jan Bucquoy (; Harelbeke, 16 November 1945) is a Belgian anarchist who has worked in various media (film, comics writing, painting, sculptures, museums). He gained fame for his controversial anti-establishment works and media stunts, which cause ...

. It stars Claude Semal,

Lolo Ferrari Lolo Ferrari (born Ève Valois; 9 February 1963 – 5 March 2000), was a French dancer, actress, and singer billed as "the woman with the largest breast implants in the world". She entered the international limelight in 1995, appearing in the ...

(Miss Vandeputte),

Noël Godin Noël Godin (born 13 September 1945) is a Belgian writer, critic, actor and notorious pie thrower or ''entarteur''. Godin gained global attention in 1998 when his group ambushed Microsoft CEO Bill Gates in Brussels, pelting the software magnate ...

(

Pierre Mertens Pierre Mertens (born 9 October 1939) is a Belgian French-speaking writer and lawyer who specializes in international law, director of the Centre de sociologie de la littérature at the Université Libre de Bruxelles, and literary critic with the ...

Herman Brusselmans Herman Frans Martha Brusselmans (; born 9 October 1957) is a Belgian novelist, poet, playwright and columnist. He lives in Ghent. He is one of the best-selling authors in Flanders, but controversial at the same time for his profane language and ...

(Herman) and

Arno The Arno is a river in the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the most important river of central Italy after the Tiber. Source and route The river originates on Monte Falterona in the Casentino area of the Apennines, and initially takes a ...

(Harry). The movie's tagline is: ''

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

, football, beer and frites''. It is an unconventional and non-conformist story of the sexual habits of Belgians.

Cosmos The cosmos (, ) is another name for the Universe. Using the word ''cosmos'' implies viewing the universe as a complex and orderly system or entity. The cosmos, and understandings of the reasons for its existence and significance, are studied in ...

refers to the eternity of heaven in full contrast with this little

campsite A campsite, also known as a campground or camping pitch, is a place used for overnight stay in an outdoor area. In British English, a ''campsite'' is an area, usually divided into a number of pitches, where people can camp overnight using te ...

where so many people live together with their problems and limited view of the world. It also refers to the Russian

cosmonauts An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally ...

who explored space, but who as

communists Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

did not believe in an afterworld. And last, the name of this Campsite Cosmos is referring to the sky without limit above the heads of its residents. The picture became a

cult film A cult film or cult movie, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage i ...

Plot

The summer of 1986. On a campsite at the

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

coast - where everybody wants to live in complete freedom and forget the obligations of everyday life - Jan Bucquoy, the delegate of the Ministry of Culture, must bring culture nearer to the working class. He presents things like

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...

's play, ''

Mother Courage and Her Children ''Mother Courage and Her Children'' (german: Mutter Courage und ihre Kinder, links=no) is a play written in 1939 by the German dramatist and poet Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956), with significant contributions from Margarete Steffin. Four theatrical ...

'' or an interview with the famous writer Pierre Mertens, but the vacationers at this caravan park are more interested in low-brow distractions, like soccer, boxing matches or beauty contests, as well as sexual adventures and temporary romances. One of the actors is dressed up to resemble

Tintin Tintin or Tin Tin may refer to: ''The Adventures of Tintin'' * ''The Adventures of Tintin'', a comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé ** Tintin (character), a fictional character in the series ** ''The Adventures of Tintin'' (film), 2011, ...

Cast

Jean-Henri Compère Jean-Henri is a French masculine given name. Notable people with the name include: * Jean-Henri d'Anglebert (1629–1691), French composer and harpsichordist * Jean-Henri Dunant (1828–1910), Henry Dunant, a Swiss businessman * Jean Henri Fabre ...

as Jan Bucquoy *

Fanny Hanciaux Fanny may refer to: Given name * Fanny (name), a feminine given name or a nickname, often for Frances In slang * A term for the vulva, in Britain and many other parts of the English-speaking world * A term for the buttocks, in the United States ...

as Eve Bucquoy *

as Mme Vandeputte *

Jean-Paul Dermont Jean Paul or ''variation'' may refer to: Places * Rue ''Jean-Paul-II'', several streets, see List of places named after Pope John Paul II * Place ''Jean Paul II'', several squares, see List of places named after Pope John Paul II People Given n ...

as M. Vandeputte * Noe Francq (credited as Noé Francq) as Noé Vandeputte *

Claude Semal Claude may refer to: __NOTOC__ People and fictional characters * Claude (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Claude (surname), a list of people * Claude Lorrain (c. 1600–1682), French landscape painter, draughtsman and etcher ...

as Claude Semal dit Tintin *

as Pierre Mertens *

Jacques Calonne Jacques Calonne (10 August 1930 – 7 February 2022) was a Belgian artist, composer, singer, actor, logogramist, and writer. Life Born in Mons, Calonne studied music from 1944 until 1946 at the conservatories of Mons and Brussels, with amongst ...

as Jacques Calonne *

Arno Hintjens Arnold Charles Ernest Hintjens (21 May 1949 – 23 April 2022), better known by his stage name Arno, was a Belgian singer. He was the frontman of TC Matic, one of the best-known Belgian bands of the 1980s. After the band split in 1986 he enjoye ...

(credited as Arno Hintjens Hintjens) as Arno *

as Herman *

Jan Decleir Jan Decleir (born as ''Jan Amanda Gustaaf Decleir'' on 14 February 1946) is a prolific Belgian movie and stage actor born in Niel, Antwerp. Career He had his first big role in Fons Rademakers's ''Mira'' (1971). Since then, he has appeared in ...

as friend of Arno *

Patricia Dollez Patricia is a female given name of Latin language, Latin origin. Derived from the Latin word ''Patrician (ancient Rome), patrician'', meaning "noble"; it is the feminine form of the masculine given name Patrick (given name), Patrick. The name Patr ...

as Mme Janssens *

Sabrina Leurquin Sabrina may refer to: * Sabrina (given name), a feminine given name, including a list of persons and fictional characters with the name People * Sabrina (actress), stage name of Norma Ann Sykes (1936–2016), a British glamour model and actres ...

as Ulrique, la terroriste *

Catherine Claeys Katherine, also spelled Catherine, and other variations are feminine names. They are popular in Christian countries because of their derivation from the name of one of the first Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria. In the early Christ ...

as Giselle Crapaud *

Isabelle Legros Isabel is a female name of Spanish origin. Isabelle is a name that is similar, but it is of French origin. It originates as the medieval Spanish form of '' Elisabeth'' (ultimately Hebrew '' Elisheva''), Arising in the 12th century, it became popu ...

as Isabelle Legros *

Jean Pierre Coopman Jean-Pierre Coopman (born 11 July 1946) is a retired Belgian boxer who is best known for his title fight against Muhammad Ali in 1976 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, which Ali won by KO in round 5. Early life Jean-Pierre Coopman was born on 11 July ...

Production

The production was entirely in the hands of Transatlantic Films and its director

Francis De Smet Francis De Smet (born 3 December 1963) is a Belgian film producer. He was born in Bruges. Films '' La Vie sexuelle des Belges 1950-1978'' (1994) with Noël Godin; ''Camping Cosmos'' (1996) with Lolo Ferrari; ''The Closing Down of the Renault Fac ...

. Because of the refusal of the

Flemish Government The Flemish Government ( nl, Vlaamse regering ) is the executive branch of the Flemish Community and the Flemish Region of Belgium. It consists of a government cabinet, headed by the Minister-President and accountable to the Flemish Parliament, ...

to raise the capital fund of the equivalent of 200.000 Euro at that time, the film had a substantial delay and was not ready in time for the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films ...

of 1996. This had consequences for the release later in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

. The film could not be released before 1997 in Paris.

Reception

The film was at the origin of a controversy about the policy of Flemish state subsidizing films not least because of the presence of main actress

References

External links

*
Transatlantic Films Official Site

{{Dead link, date=October 2019 , bot=InternetArchiveBot , fix-attempted=yes review 1996 films 1996 comedy films Belgian comedy films Belgian independent films Belgian satirical films Belgian political satire films 1990s black comedy films 1990s crime comedy films 1990s French-language films Dutch-language films Films about vacationing Films set on beaches Films set in Belgium Films shot in Belgium Films set in 1986 Films directed by Jan Bucquoy Tintin parodies