French comedy films are

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

s produced in France.

Comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

is the most popular

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

genre in cinema. Comic films began in significant numbers during the era of silent films, roughly 1895 to 1930. The visual humour of many of these silent films relied on slapstick and

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

Characteristics of French comedy films

French comedy films are very often social comedies, which differs largely from American comedies."La comédie française se différencie ..par son aspect social, une lutte des classes généralement absente des comédies américaines." .

Social comedy

Culture shock, in several French comedies, oftentimes contain several 'clichés', which include: * Religion – ''

The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacob ''The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacob'' (, ) is a 1973 French-Italian comedy film directed by Gérard Oury, starring Louis de Funès and Claude Giraud. It follows a bigoted businessman and a kidnapped revolutionist who disguise themselves as rabbi ...

'' in the 1970s, and ''

Serial (Bad) Weddings ''Serial (Bad) Weddings'' () is a 2014 French comedy film directed by Philippe de Chauveron, and starring Christian Clavier and Chantal Lauby. It is the first installment in the ''Serial (Bad) Weddings'' film series, and was followed by ''Serial ( ...

'' in the 2010s * Social background – ''

Life Is a Long Quiet River ''Life Is a Long Quiet River'' () is a 1988 French comedy film directed by Étienne Chatiliez. Through the age-old question of nature versus nurture, the film takes a satirical look at society in the industrial north by contrasting the precarious l ...

'' in the 1980s, and ''

The Intouchables ''The Intouchables'' (, ), also known as ''Untouchable'' in the UK, Ireland, and Scandinavia, is a 2011 French buddy comedy-drama film written and directed by Éric Toledano and Olivier Nakache. It stars François Cluzet and Omar Sy. The plo ...

'' in the 2010s * Difference of life between two places – '' Welcome to the Land of ch'tis'' in the 2000s * Difference of life between two periods of time – '' The Visitors'' and '' The Visitors II: The Corridors of Time'' in the 1990s * Difference of life in a parallel world – '' Jean-Philippe'' in the 2000s

Comedy duos

Some French comedy films are based on

buddy film The buddy film is a subgenre of adventure and comedy film in which two people go on an adventure, mission, or road trip. The two typically are males with contrasting personalities. The contrast is sometimes accentuated by an ethnic difference b ...

, in which two people with highly differing personalities are partnered up.

Other characteristics

French comedy films are often based on linguistic differences:

History

French comedy before cinema

In Europe, the theatrical genre-like comedy developed in the Greco-Roman antiquity, much like the tragedy theaters built in the Roman Empire. During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, theater plays in the street, in the form of

mystery play Mystery plays and miracle plays (they are distinguished as two different forms although the terms are often used interchangeably) are among the earliest formally developed plays in medieval Europe. Medieval mystery plays focused on the represe ...

fabliau A ''fabliau'' (; plural ''fabliaux'') is a comic, often anonymous tale written by jongleurs and clerics in France between c. 1150 and 1400. They are generally characterized by sexual and scatological obscenity, and by a set of contrary attitud ...

farce Farce is a comedy that seeks to entertain an audience through situations that are highly exaggerated, extravagant, ridiculous, absurd, and improbable. Farce is also characterized by heavy use of physical comedy, physical humor; the use of delibe ...

sotie A ''sotie'' (or ''sottie'') is a short satirical play common in 15th- and 16th-century in France. The word (compare modern ''sottise'') comes from the ''sots'', "fools", who appeared as characters in the play. In the plays, these fools would make ...

s and

mime A mime artist, or simply mime (from Greek language, Greek , , "imitator, actor"), is a person who uses ''mime'' (also called ''pantomime'' outside of Britain), the acting out of a story through body motions without the use of speech, as a the ...

s were more or less inspired by antique survivals genres like Atellan. In France during the 17th century under

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

, the Italian influence and

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, ; ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the great writers in the French language and world liter ...

began to recognize the comedy theater as an art in itself and not as a subgenre compared to the tragedy. From the 18th to the 19th century, comedy would continue to incorporate

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

and

comédie-ballet ''Comédie-ballet'' is a genre of French drama which mixes a spoken play with interludes containing music and dance. History The first example of the genre is considered to be ''Les fâcheux'', with words by Molière, performed in honour of Loui ...

and become

opéra comique ''Opéra comique'' (; plural: ''opéras comiques'') is a genre of French opera that contains spoken dialogue and arias. It emerged from the popular ''opéras comiques en vaudevilles'' of the Théâtre de la foire, Fair Theatres of St Germain and S ...

. Comedy would also inspire the

Operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs and including dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, and length of the work. Apart from its shorter length, the oper ...

( Offenbach) in the middle of the 19th century. At the beginning of the 20th century,

operettas Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs and including dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, and length of the work. Apart from its shorter length, the ope ...

were transformed into

musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatre, theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, ...

Bourvil André Robert Raimbourg (; 27 July 1917 – 23 September 1970), better known as André Bourvil (), and mononymously as Bourvil, was a French actor and singer best known for his roles in comedy films, most notably in his collaboration with Loui ...

and

Fernandel Fernand Joseph Désiré Contandin (8 May 1903 – 26 February 1971), better known as Fernandel, was a French comic actor. Born in Marseille, France, to Désirée Bedouin and Denis Contandin, originating in Perosa Argentina, a town located in th ...

started as operetta singers while

Louis de Funès Louis Germain David de Funès de Galarza (; 31 July 1914 – 27 January 1983) was a French actor and comedian. He is France's favourite actor, according to a series of polls conducted since the late 1960s, having played over 150 roles in fi ...

started as a music-hall pianist.

Beginning of cinema

Pantomimes lumineuses. Théâtre optique de E. Reynaud, musique de Gaston Paulin. affiche avec la lettre, Jules Chéret.jpg, alt=Reynaud Pantomimes., Pantomimes cartoons by Reynaud Fratelli Lumiere.jpg, alt=Fratelli Lumiere., Fratelli Lumiere In 1892, before cinema was created,

Émile Reynaud Charles-Émile Reynaud (8 December 1844 – 9 January 1918) was a French inventor, responsible for the praxinoscope (an animation device patented in 1877 that improved on the zoetrope) and was responsible for the first projected animated fil ...

recognized several comedy cartoons, including Le Clown et ses chiens. Comic films began to appear in significant numbers during the era of silent films, placed from 1895 to 1930. The visual humour of many of these silent films relied on slapstick and

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

. A very early comedy short was '' Watering the Gardener'' (1895) by the

Lumière brothers Lumière is French for 'light'. Lumiere, Lumière or Lumieres may refer to: Buildings * Lumière, a building used by the Bibliothèque publique d'information in Paris, France * Lumiere (skyscraper), a cancelled skyscraper development in Leeds, ...

. In his native France and throughout the world,

Max Linder Gabriel-Maximilien Leuvielle (16 December 18831 November 1925), known professionally as Max Linder (), was a French actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and comedian of the silent film era. His onscreen persona "Max" was one of the first r ...

was a major comic feature and might qualify as the first true film star.

Georges Méliès Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès ( , ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French magic (illusion), magician, toymaker, actor, and filmmaker. He led many technical and narrative developments in the early days of film, cinema, primarily in th ...

, from theatre, created the first studio de cinéma. He also created many silent comedies. He had a homage in 2011 with the movie ''Hugo''. During the

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, America obtained the monopoly of comedy movies with the '

silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...

' (

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is considered o ...

Laurel and Hardy Laurel and Hardy were a British-American double act, comedy duo during the early Classical Hollywood cinema, Classical Hollywood era of American cinema, consisting of Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and American Oliver Hardy (1892–1957) ...

) Only after sound was integrated into these performances (

The Jazz Singer ''The Jazz Singer'' is a 1927 American part-talkie musical drama film directed by Alan Crosland and produced by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is the first feature-length motion picture with both synchronized recorded music and lip-synchronous ...

was released in 1927 in US) that comedy films started being produced in France from the 1930s.

Interwar and occupation

When the sound entered cinema in 1927, comedy films returned to popularity, due to dialogue now being available for usage. As the majority of France lived in rural areas during the 1930s, most films took place in similar areas.

1940s to 1970s

After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, French society went under many changes during the 1940s to the 1970s, and thus it had a big impact on the comedies of this period. A number of French comedians were able to find an

English speaking English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

audience in this period, including

and

Jacques Tati Jacques Tati (; born Jacques Tatischeff, ; 9 October 1907 – 5 November 1982) was a French mime, filmmaker, actor and screenwriter. In an ''Entertainment Weekly'' poll of the Greatest Movie Directors, he was voted 46th (a list of the top 50 was ...

1970s to 1990s

At the beginning of the 1970s, new actors from the

baby-boomer Baby boomers, often shortened to boomers, are the demographic cohort preceded by the Silent Generation and followed by Generation X. The generation is often defined as people born from 1946 to 1964 during the mid-20th century baby boom that fol ...

generation starred in comedy films. Some examples would be

Gérard Depardieu Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu (, , ; born 27 December 1948) is a French actor. An icon of French cinema, considered a world star in the same way as Alain Delon or Brigitte Bardot, he has completed over 250 films since 1967, most of which as ...

, the Splendid troupe,

Daniel Auteuil Daniel Auteuil (; born 24 January 1950) is a French actor and director who has appeared in a wide range of film genres, including period dramas, romantic comedies, and crime thrillers. In 1996 he won the Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Fest ...

Daniel Prévost Daniel Prévost (; born 20 October 1939) is a French actor, comedian and writer. Early life Daniel Prévost, alias Denis Forestier, was born to Micheline Chevalier and Mohand Ait Salem. His father was of Berber descent from Algeria (Kabylie ...

, and

Coluche Michel Gérard Joseph Colucci (, ; 28 October 1944 – 19 June 1986), better known under his stage name Coluche (), was a French stage comedian, cinema actor, activist and philanthropist. He adopted ''Coluche'' as a stage name at age 26, when he ...

Le Splendid

The 1970s to 1990s corresponded to the golden age of comedies created and played by

le Splendid Le Splendid is a café-théâtre company founded in Paris by a collection of writers and actors in the 1970s: Christian Clavier, Michel Blanc, Gérard Jugnot, Thierry Lhermitte (four childhood friends who knew one another from the Lycée Pasteur ...

which have been very famous in the theatre industry.

1970s to 1980s

Comedies from the era tackled new social phenomena and were meant to provoke or shock audiences. Provocation is present in multiple films, such as '' Going Places'', ''

La Grande Bouffe ''La Grande Bouffe'' (, English titles ''The Grand Bouffe'' and ''Blow-Out'') is a 1973 French–Italian satirical film directed by Marco Ferreri. It stars Marcello Mastroianni, Ugo Tognazzi, Michel Piccoli, Philippe Noiret and Andréa Ferréol ...

'', ''

Les Babas Cool ''Les Babas Cool'' is a French comedy film directed by François Leterrier. It was released in 1981. Plot Antoine Bonfils is a household appliance salesman. His car breaks down close to a farm. Looking for help, he figures out that the people t ...

'', and '' Menage''. In '' Santa Claus is a bastard'', Santa Claus (who is traditionally portrayed as calm) is highly violent and vulgar, and brandishes a gun.

1980s to 2000s

A new introduction of

Francis Veber Francis Paul Veber (born 28 July 1937) is a French film director, screenwriter and producer, and playwright. He has written and directed both French and American films. Nine French-language films with which he has been involved, as either writer ...

's concept arose during this period. 'Francois Pignon' and 'Francois Perrin' symbolized the stupider and more naive man triumphing over the smarter and "stronger" man due to luck.

2000s to present

The 2000s correspond to a transition: indeed, the Splendid troupe generation of the 1970s tends to give over to newcomers (Dany Boon, Jamel Debbouze, Omar Sy) who have become famous with 'one man shows'.

Notes and references

References

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