Zazie dans le Métro
A brash and precocious ten-year-old comes to Paris for a whirlwind weekend with her rakish uncle. He and the viewer get more than they bargained for, however, in this anarchic comedy that rides roughshod over the City of Light. Based on a popular novel by Raymond Queneau that had been considered unadaptable, the audacious Zazie dans le Métro, made with flair on the cusp of the French New Wave, is a bit of stream-of-consciousness slapstick, wall-to-wall with visual gags, editing tricks, and effects.
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- Cast:
- Catherine Demongeot , Philippe Noiret , Hubert Deschamps , Carla Marlier , Annie Fratellini , Vittorio Caprioli , Yvonne Clech
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People are voting emotionally.
good back-story, and good acting
Don't listen to the negative reviews
By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.
When the mother of Zazie (Catherine Demongeot) comes to Paris to meet her lover, she leaves her daughter with her uncle Gabriel (Philippe Noiret). However the reckless and uncontrollable nephew leaves Gabriel's apartment and decides to visit Paris by subway. However the employees are on strike and the runaway girl gets Gabriel into trouble in a chaotic Paris."Zazie Dans le Metro" is a surrealistic, bizarre and annoying comedy "à la Mel Brooks". This type of humor might works for Parisians or even Europeans, but I really did not like it. The lead character is irritating and Catherine Demongeot is not funny. My vote is four.Title (Brazil): Not Available
I've just seen this movie on DVD and enjoyed the humor and wit. According to some Dutch and French web-pages like http://perso.orange.fr/cinefrance/1960/zazie.html Zazie is not played by 12yo Catherine but by a 9½yo Milène, what seems right to me by the looks of her, she's definitely too petite for a 12yo, age 9 or 10 seems much more likely. In the trailer she is described as a 9½yo too. Her lines seem a little too adult now and then, but bear in mind who wrote the scenario! Louis Malle was famous for breaking taboos. This movie was intended for enjoyment, like a comedy, but with a sharp view on the changing French society. Also some comments on hypocritical ways of dealing with taboos like homosexuality and "dirty old men". Funny to see the traffic congestion in Paris, already then, and the looney effects, inspired by Tex Avery.
Great cinema, with a wonderful exuberance and style. Louis Malle showed his great talent and versatility in this romp of cheeky comedy. Blessed with a Zazie that (for me ) captures the essence of the character originally created by Raymond Queneau, this is a 60's French film that continues to bring naive pleasure to those to whom it is a memory of the renaissance of French cinema in the early 60's, and (hopefully) will still retain a few inspirational moments for those see this movie thirty years on and who have had the benefit of later comedic directors who learned from this well-crafted and thoroughly entertaining movie.
Frankly, in the world of corny jokes and lightweight punchlines of the Hollywood comedies I hunger for the good old French physical comedy. Malle is one of the best ju-ju men in the business and in Zazie laughs never stop. Actually, in this movie anything ever stops as people are running rather then walking and driving rather than sitting still. The story is quite simple, a little girl is sent by her mother to Paris to her uncle and the only thing she wants really is to see subway (metro). Of course she runs away, of course everybody starting after her, of course there are some dumb cops and sinister-looking strangers... Or maybe I got it all wrong for having laughed so hard I could not read the subtitles (and my French would barely guide me through a menu in some bistro). Think of it as a live action Roadrunner movie on caffeine...