Les Croulants se portent bien (1961)
Directed by Jean Boyer

Film Review

Even in the twilight of his long and illustrious career, director Jean Boyer showed no sign of losing his touch and it was with his customary gusto that he tackled this enjoyable domestic farce, based on a play by Roger Ferdinand.  Looking spookily like a British sitcom of the 1970s (a cross-between Bless This House and Father, Dear Father), Les Croulants se portent bien now appears ahead of its time with its well-observed depiction of the generational divide that would become far more noticeable in later decades.  'Croulant' apparently means someone who is 'past it', an epithet that certainly does not apply to Fernand Gravey, looking as sprightly as ever in the kind of gentleman comedy role for which he was particularly well suited (if pushed, he could probably out-charm David Niven).  Supported by Nadia Gray, Sophie Daumier and an impossibly young Jacques Perrin, with Jean Tissier putting in a brief appearance, Gravey lends a touch of class and maturity to this genteel, well-scripted comedy.

Film Synopsis

Fifty-something François Legrand is a successful composer who enjoys a comfortable life in the company of his mother Minouche and grown-up children, Michel and Martine.  The latter are surprised when François announces his intention to marry Jacqueline, a woman who is much younger than he is.  On the day that François chooses to introduce his fiancée to his children, Michel realises that he is madly in love with an older woman, a friend of his father's.  Martine then does her best to persuade her godfather, Émile, a man more than twice her age, that he is her beau idéal.  When François learns that both of his children are infatuated with people of his generation he is appalled and hastily sets out to convince them of their mistake...