Little new here story-wise so if the cast make a mess of it there's nowhere left to go. With the likes of top-billed Gerard Jugnot there's not much chance of that but British viewers may find it hard to reconcile Jean Dujardin's facial resemblance to and adoption of the mannerisms of Leonard Rossiter to give credence to his Flynn-like seducing and brawling. As Valentin his lifestyle of choice revolves around women, gambling and, when necessary, fighting. Uncle Van Buck (Gerard Jugnot) wants to marry him off to our old friend the impoverished Baroness Cecile (Melanie Doutey) but with no desire to settle down he bets his uncle that he can seduce the Baroness with, as it were, one hand tied behind his back, thus proving her no better than any other woman and certainly not wife material. As I said an old story but one with nice touches of the kind that Ophuls or Billy Wilder would not have been able to get away with like the sign outside the bordel, a variation on those Black Forest Weather Indicators, or our introduction to Valentin, blindfolded in the bordel, identifying each girl by the taste of her nipples. They didn't make them like that in the old days. All in all a delightful soufflé.
Review of Il ne faut jurer... de rien!
