''Reality'' (french: Réalité) is a 2014 French-Belgian

comedy-drama film Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

written and directed by

Quentin Dupieux Quentin Dupieux (, born 14 April 1974), also known by his musical stage name Mr. Oizo (), is a French filmmaker, electronic musician, and DJ. Dupieux is credited with his legal name for his films, while the name "Mr. Oizo" is used for his musica ...

. The film premiered in the Horizons section at the 71st Venice International Film Festival on August 28, 2014. It stars

Alain Chabat Alain Chabat (; born 24 November 1958) is a French actor, comedian, director, screenwriter, producer and television presenter. He was originally known for his work in the comedy group Les Nuls, including as the co-writer and lead actor of ''La C ...

Jonathan Lambert Jonathan Lambert (February 11, 1772 - May 27, 1812) was an American sailor. He was the first settler, and the self-proclaimed ruler of the Tristan da Cunha archipelago. Biography Lambert was born in Salem, Massachusetts. After a tumultuous ca ...

Élodie Bouchez Élodie Bouchez-Bangalter (born 5 April 1973) is a French actress. She became internationally known for her role as Renée Rienne on the fifth and final season of the television show ''Alias'' and for playing Maïté Alvarez in the film ''Wild ...

Eric Wareheim Eric Alexander Wareheim (; born April 7, 1976) is an American comedian, actor, writer, director, musician, and winemaker. He is best known as one half of the comedy duo Tim & Eric, alongside Tim Heidecker. He also had a recurring role on the Netf ...

, John Glover and

Jon Heder Jonathan Joseph Heder (; born October 26, 1977) is an American actor, best known for his role as the title character of the 2004 comedy film ''Napoleon Dynamite''. He has also appeared in the films '' Just Like Heaven'', ''The Benchwarmers'', ''S ...

Plot

A wannabe

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

is given 48 hours by a producer to find the best groan of

pain Pain is a distressing feeling often caused by intense or damaging stimuli. The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as "an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with, or resembling that associated with, ...

, worthy of an

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology) ...

, as the only condition to back his film. Meanwhile,

reality Reality is the sum or aggregate of all that is real or existent within a system, as opposed to that which is only imaginary. The term is also used to refer to the ontological status of things, indicating their existence. In physical terms, r ...

dream A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around 5 to 20 minutes, althou ...

s, and

fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditi ...

repeatedly overlap.

Cast

as Jason Tantra *

as Bob Marshall *

as Alice Tantra *

Kyla Kenedy Kyla Kenedy (born February 4, 2003) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Izzie on the television film ''Raising Izzie'', and Mika Samuels on AMC horror series '' The Walking Dead''. In 2016, she began playing Dylan DiMeo on the ...

as Reality *

as Henri * John Glover as Zog *

as Dennis *

Matt Battaglia Matteo Martin "Matt" Battaglia (born September 25, 1965) is an American producer, actor and former American football linebacker. Football career Battaglia played college football at the University of Louisville. Battaglia played at Louisville a ...

as Mike * Susan Diol as Gaby *

Bambadjan Bamba Bambadjan Bamba (born in Abidjan) is an Ivorian-American actor and filmmaker known for his roles in ''Black Panther'', ''Suicide Squad'', and ''The Good Place''. He is also a prominent immigrant rights advocate. Life and career Bamba was born ...

as Tony *

Patrick Bristow Patrick Bristow (born September 26, 1962) is an American actor, comedian and director. He is best known for playing Peter Barnes on ''Ellen'' (1994-1998), and Patrick on ''The Suite Life of Zack and Cody'' (2005-2008), and for the film ''Pain ...

as Klaus *

Sandra Nelson Sandra Nelson Winkler (born December 29, 1964), more commonly credited as Sandra Nelson, is an American actress. She was born in Madison, Wisconsin, and is best known for her role as Phyllis Summers on ''The Young and the Restless'' that she pl ...

as Isabella * Carol Locatell as Lucienne * Erik Passoja as Billie * Jonathan Spencer as Blue * Lola Delon as Zog's Assistant *

Roxane Mesquida Roxane Mesquida (born 1 October 1981) is a French-American actress and model based in Los Angeles. Mesquida grew up in Le Pradet, a little town located in southern France. Her mother, writer Françoise Mesquida, is French/Spanish and her father ...

as Awards Hostess *

Michel Hazanavicius Michel Hazanavicius ( lt, Hazanavičius; born 29 March 1967) is a French film director, screenwriter, editor, and producer. He is best known for his 2011 film, '' The Artist'', which won the Academy Award for Best Picture at the 84th Academy Aw ...

as Award Presenter * Brad Greenquist as Jacques * Axelle Cummings as The Receptionist * Brandon Gage as Serge * Raevan Lee Hanan as Luci

Thomas Bangalter Thomas Bangalter (; born 3 January 1975) is a French musician, record producer, singer, songwriter, DJ and composer. Son of French music composer and artist Daniel Vangarde. He is best known as one half of the former French house music duo Daft ...

, husband of Bouchez and former member of

Daft Punk Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. Widely regarded as one of the most influential acts in dance music history, they achieved popularity in the late 1990s as p ...

, has an uncredited cameo in the film. He plays the patient in the

dermatologist Dermatology is the branch of medicine dealing with the skin.''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary.'' Random House, Inc. 2001. Page 537. . It is a speciality with both medical and surgical aspects. A dermatologist is a specialist medical ...

waiting room A waiting room or waiting hall is a building, or more commonly a part of a building or a room, where people sit or stand until the event or appointment for which they are waiting begins. There are two types of waiting room. One has individuals ...

Production

Music

The soundtrack consists of only the first five minutes of "Music With Changing Parts" by

Philip Glass Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer and pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century. Glass's work has been associated with minimal music, minimalism, being built up fr ...

Reception

Critical reception

On review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the film holds an approval rating of 64% based on 25 reviews, with an average rating of 6.13/10. The French cinema site AlloCiné gave the film a rating of 3.6/5 stars based on 32 reviews.

References

External links

* * * 2014 films 2014 comedy-drama films 2010s English-language films 2010s French-language films French comedy-drama films Belgian comedy-drama films French satirical films Films about filmmaking Films directed by Quentin Dupieux 2010s satirical films Belgian satirical films English-language Belgian films English-language French films French-language Belgian films 2010s French films {{2010s-France-film-stub