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Starring Penélope Cruz, Carmen Maura
Directed by Pedro Almodovar
The Dinner Guest is another of those French comedies we’ve come to know so well, because they’ve been making the same film for years.
They always star Daniel Auteuil; he’s the nice guy everyone knows who might chew your head off if the mood caught him, but could be relied upon to put the rubbish out if you forgot.
You know, French… So it is with Gerard who lives with his hare-brained wife. He’s in line for a new job, but first the manager wants to meet them over dinner. At Gerard’s place.
Cue comedy as the couple panic about their home, their lives and their very selves fearing the wrong impression will cost Gerard his job. Managers are evil, assures their pushy neighbour, a ‘consultant’ who insists on performing a lifestyle makeover.
Ooh la la! The Dinner Guest is agreeable entertainment, little more.
Director Laurent Bouhnik doesn’t take things far from source, and not far from similar fish-out-of-water fare like The Closet or The Valet. Valérie Lemercier adds sparkle as the put-upon wife who learns the difference between a beefy Burgundy and Boeuf Bourguignon, while Bouhnik riffs on the values of trust and friendship.
There’s nothing new about The Dinner Guest; it’s a cinematic Doona for a Sunday afternoon.
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