''The Favour, the Watch and the Very Big Fish'' is a 1991

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

Ben Lewin Ben Lewin (born 1946) is an Australian director. Early life and education Ben Lewin was born in Poland. As a child, he emigrated with his family to Melbourne, Australia. At the age of six, he contracted polio which has caused him to use cru ...

, starring Bob Hoskins,

Jeff Goldblum Jeffrey Lynn Goldblum (; born October 22, 1952) is an American actor and musician. He has starred in some of the highest-grossing films of his era, such as ''Jurassic Park'' (1993) and ''Independence Day'' (1996), as well as their sequels. ...

and

Natasha Richardson Natasha Jane Richardson (11 May 1963 – 18 March 2009) was an English actress of stage and screen. A member of the Redgrave family, Richardson was the daughter of actress Vanessa Redgrave and director/producer Tony Richardson and the granddaug ...

. The story, set in Paris, follows the fateful meeting of Louis Aubinar with Sybil, who brings into his life her last unfortunate lover, the Pianist. The plot is based on a short story by

Marcel Aymé Marcel Aymé (29 March 1902 – 14 October 1967) was a French novelist and playwright, who also wrote screenplays and works for children. Biography Marcel André Aymé was born in Joigny, in the Burgundy region of France, the youngest of si ...

Extended plot

Louis Aubinar ( Bob Hoskins), a humble, middle-aged photographer, specializes in religious pictures. Louis lives in a small apartment in Paris with his psychotic sister, Elizabeth, who cooks terrible meals, including grinding an entire

sailfish The sailfish is one or two species of marine fish in the genus ''Istiophorus'', which belong to the family Istiophoridae ( marlins). They are predominantly blue to gray in colour and have a characteristically large dorsal fin known as the ...

into paste. His employer, Norbert, a prestigious religious articles curator, has commissioned a series of portraits of the Saints. Norbert decides to discard their next project,

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

, and move directly to

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...

. Louis, who is already cash-strapped, faces the prospect of being fired if he does not find an appropriate model for Jesus. Louis' friend Zalman is also worried, as he was supposed to have posed as John the Baptist for the cancelled photo, and now his flu will interfere with another job in film-dubbing that he counts on keeping. He asks Louis to do him a favour and cover his part until he's well. In spite of his terrible situation, Louis agrees and goes to Zalman's job, which turns out to be voice dubbing for pornographic films. In shock, he takes his place near Sybil (

). Dazed and traumatized, he inadvertently has a loud, intense

orgasm Orgasm (from Greek , ; "excitement, swelling") or sexual climax is the sudden discharge of accumulated sexual excitement during the sexual response cycle, resulting in rhythmic, involuntary muscular contractions in the pelvic region chara ...

, impressing Sybil. They

meet cute In film and television, a meet cute is a scene in which the two people who will form a future romantic couple meet for the first time, typically under unusual, humorous, or cute circumstances. This type of scene is a staple of romantic comedies, ...

, and Louis introduces himself as Zalman, to cover his friend's absence. Sybil tells Louis the story of her last unfortunate relationship with a passionate but delusional Pianist (

), who worked in the same restaurant as she did. A girl having her birthday party at the restaurant offered Sybil a watch, so that Sybil would make the Pianist smile while he played. They become close, and their passion improves his playing, and by consequence the reputation of the restaurant. A Violinist begins playing at the restaurant, also performing passionately, and is attacked by the Pianist in a jealous rage which landed him in prison for three years, due to be released the next day. Louis, moved by Sybil's story, lends her money to buy a suit for the Pianist, and promises to be there with her at the prison gates. Sybil's sickly grandfather has a complication that makes Sybil miss their meeting at the prison gates, so Louis follows the wrong person. Later he is confused when he sees the suit returned to the shop's window. By a stroke of fate, the Pianist finds Norbert's card and arrives there in a downpour of rain. Louis finds the Pianist is the perfect model for Jesus, and helps him obtain a very well-paying contract from Norbert. Louis is taking the best pictures of his career with the Pianist (who gives various names to himself, including Frédéric Chopin) as Jesus. However, life is becoming complicated for the Pianist; he is being identified as Jesus by the public that has seen his posters. By another stroke of fate, he is forced to try to cure a blind boy and, during his pretended concentration, a golf ball hits the boy on the head and the boy's sight is restored. Doubting his own identity, the Pianist starts believing that he is Jesus. Through friendly conversations with Louis, he also starts understanding that Louis is disclosing to him his feelings for the same Sybil from the Pianist's past. Meanwhile, Sybil had returned the suit to the store and returns the borrowed money to the real Zalman, who happens to be too sick to open the door. Still trying to locate Louis, who she thinks is Zalman, she arrives at Norbert's, from where the Pianist has recently been fired. As the Pianist sees Sybil talking to Norbert, he attacks Louis. Louis is caught off guard, as he is still completely unaware of the Pianist's former relation with Sybil. Finally, the Pianist believing himself to be Jesus tries to walk on water and drowns in a river. Louis, still confused, is carrying his ashes in an urn when Sybil finally finds him. The film ends with the two of them getting close to each other again. At the very end, Sybil, who still believes that Louis is Zalman, notices that he is wearing the very watch that she was once given.

Home media

''The Favour, the Watch and the Very Big Fish'' was released on VHS in the United States in 1992 by Vidmark Entertainment as well as in Canada by Cineplex Odeon.

Cast

* Bob Hoskins as Louis Aubinard *

as Pianist *

as Sybil * Michel Blanc as Norbert *

Angela Pleasence Daphne Anne Angela Pleasence (born 30 September 1941) is an English actress. Trained in theatre, Pleasence's first major film role came in '' Hitler: The Last Ten Days'' (1973), followed by roles in horror films such as ''From Beyond the Grave'' ...

as Louis' Sister *

Jean-Pierre Cassel Jean-Pierre Cassel (born Jean-Pierre Crochon; 27 October 1932 – 19 April 2007) was a French actor. Early life Cassel was born Jean-Pierre Crochon in the 13th arrondissement of Paris, the son of Louise-Marguerite (née Fabrègue), an opera sin ...

as Zalman * Samuel Chaimovitch as Sybil's Grandfather * Sacha Vikouloff as The Violinist * Claudine Mavros as Mother Superior * Carlos Kloster as The Archbishop *

Artus de Penguern Artus de Penguern (13 March 1957 – 14 May 2013) was a French director, writer and actor of Breton descent. On stage Filmography References External links * 1957 births French film directors 2013 deaths French people of Breto ...

as Saint Francis * Caroline Jacquin as Studio Receptionist * Tim Holm as Office Receptionist * Patrick Albenque as Sound Engineer * Gérard Zalcberg as Released Prisoner *

Jean-Michel Ribes Jean-Michel Ribes (born 15 December 1946, in Paris) is a French playwright, screenwriter, theatre director, film maker and actor. Since 2002 he has been the managing director of the Théâtre du Rond-Point. Between 1982 and 1984 Ribes had direct ...

as Beggar * Beth McFadden as Birthday Party Girl * Julien Calderbank as Blind Boy * Pamela Goldblum as Lady in Subway * Maximilien Seide as Little Boy in Subway * Claire Magnin as Mother in Subway *

Jacques Villeret Jacques Villeret (; 6 February 1951 – 28 January 2005) was a French actor, best known internationally for his role as François Pignon in the comedy ''Le Dîner de Cons''. During his career, he earned many awards including the prestigious ...

as Lingerie Man * Maurice Herman as Apostle * Pascal Beckar as Apostle * Edouard Hastings as Apostle * Michel Sebban as Apostle * Jean-François Vlerick as Apostle *Geoffrey Carey as Apostle

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Favour, The Watch And The Very Big Fish 1992 films Films based on short fiction Films based on works by Marcel Aymé British comedy films French comedy films 1990s screwball comedy films Films set in Paris Trimark Pictures films Films directed by Ben Lewin English-language French films 1991 comedy films 1991 films 1992 comedy films 1990s English-language films 1990s British films 1990s French films