Rating: 
Summary: Very funny movie; rather basic DVD.
Review: A coworker recommended this movie to me, and I rented it. I am so glad I did. It is very very funny, and (except for a bit of gunplay) it is CLEAN! Well OK there is some mess with bubble gum, but that's not the kind of clean I mean. ;-) Definitely one of the better comedies I have seen over the last few years, and I may soon be adding this to my collection.
I would recommend, however, that you NOT pay full price for this DVD; rather, see if you can snag a used copy from an Amazon Marketplace seller. As others have pointed out, it is a rather barebones disc, and the poor grammar in the cast bios (putting PAST events in the PRESENT TENSE) along with the clunky navigation have caused me to reluctantly deduct a star from the rating. The picture quality is excellent, however.
Rating: 
Summary: One of the funniest films I've ever seen
Review: I first saw this film when it first came out. At that time I thought it was one of the funniest films I'd ever seen. Now, thirty years or so later, It still remains fresh in my memory. Louis de Funes, who has been described as the French Leon Errol, is great as the "hero" of the film and he is surrounded by a excellent cast of characters. I recommend this picture to anyone who likes to laugh.
Rating:
Summary: I wish they had more Louis de Funes DVDs
Review: I just watched the movie on DVD last night and was reminded once again why Louis de Funes was my favorite actor growing up even though I don't even speak French. I've seen plenty of his comedies, and some of his best are part of the Gendarme-series, where he plays a cop who encounters human-looking Extraterrestrials at one point. He has to throw water on them to make them rust. The DVD image is of great quality even though you may not have heard of the releasing studio before. As far as the plot, if you like screwball comedies, this is one of the best available.
Rating: 
Summary: Great movie ... poor DVD treatment
Review: I loved this movie when I first saw it two decades ago. Great humor and premise. The bubblegum scene is priceless, unforgettable. Like most comedies, some moments and gags don't live up to others, and some coincidences and motivations are forced. The dated score may sound -- to some people -- a little cheesy at times. Nevertheless, I'd give the movie 4.5 stars. Definitely worth seeing! On the other hand, I'd give the DVD itself 1 star -- for the fact that the movie at least *is* available on DVD, is in its original widescreen aspect ratio, and the packaging has nice graphics. One annoyance is that you can't turn off the (English) subtitles. (Also, there are no options for French subtitles or -- I speak for others -- English dubbing.) Another annoyance is the pitiful, solitary "extra feature": Cast and Crew. For one thing, only two people are listed. And couldn't they find someone who knows English to edit the text? Furthermore, the user interface for Cast and Crew is terrible. The default is to go back to the previous screen, rather than forward; and there is no option to go back to the main Cast and Crew screen (you have to go back to the main menu and start from scratch). Lots of unnecessary clicking to get very little information. The scene selection interface is clunky as well. In summary, almost no extra features are present, and no thought was put into the user interface. It is always a shame when an excellent movie gets a poor DVD treatment.
Rating:
Summary: Just one of many great Louis De Funès films.
Review: I must say, I disagree completely with whoever it was who said that because of Louis de Funès' extraordinary performance in this movie that this is the only movie for which he is well known in the English-speaking world. He's indeed very funny in this movie, but this is not his best film. Why his other classics, such as La Grande Vadrouille, L'Aile Ou La Cuisse or others are not released with english subtitles is quite beyond me!
This movie gets 4.5 stars from me; it goes by quickly and it has many incredibly funny parts, but it doesn't quite seem to flow as smoothly as those other De Funès films that I've seen (while on my vacation to Russia, where they're shown all the time on tv). The ending, in particular, is chaotic and confusing. The DVD, however gets 3/5 from me. The quality might be a BIT better than a VHS, and the picture is clean, but it's still not nearly as sharp as most DVDs out there. Also, there is no option to turn off the subtitles (which are pretty good, although not everything is translated and a few puns such as "Pivert" vs "pervert" took a while for me to sink in). Frankly, they have no excuse for the lack of effort on the DVD. This DVD is currently pretty high on the Amazon.ca sales rankings. Louis de Funès' most popular movie, La Grande Vadrouille, is even higher (~136) and was chosen for "Le meilleur de l'année 2003" ("The best of year 2003"). So it REALLY baffles me why nobody is bothering to release any of this comedian's other movies for English speaking audiences, in GOOD DVDs; the market is certainly there. PLEASE, PLEASE release more Louis De Funès DVDs! Anyway, those of you who're English-speaking and who've never seen a Louis De Funès film should buy this DVD without a second thought; you won't regret it, it's very entertaining, and not just if you're French!
Rating:
Summary: Add this classic to your collection
Review: It is about time that this classic screwball slapstick comedy is available to the US. When I originally saw this film in the theatres back in 73- I laughed alot- and now this film is still one of the funniest comedies I have ever seen- According to the description of the DVD the film is in French and has english subtitles- if this is correct- Who cares!- The story and slapstick make the film- In any language Rabbi Jacob is a good time.
Rating:
Summary: still as relevent & funny today as it was 30 years ago !
Review: Louis De Funes the all time master of physical comedy in his best
& most hillarious film ever !
Pulling no puches the movie exposes racism of all kind that of the french of course but also the ever actual middle-eastern brand of bigotry.It's brillance resides in it's evenhandedness in
denouncing racism as a sign of intellectual weakness.Plus the gags are fast & furious throughout the very entertaining 90 minutes of pleasure ! highly recommended !
Rating:
Summary: still as relevent & funny today as it was 30 years ago !
Review: Louis De Funes the all time master of physical comedy in his best
& most hillarious film ever !
Pulling no punches the movie exposes racism of all kind that of the french of course but also the ever actual middle-eastern brand of bigotry.It's brillance resides in it's evenhandedness in
denouncing racism as a sign of intellectual weakness.Plus the gags are fast & furious throughout the very entertaining 90 minutes of pleasure ! highly recommended !
Rating:
Summary: Nice job on the dvd, Facets!!
Review: The madcap slapstick adventure won't appeal to everyone, but there is much that is original and funny. I must say, though, to those reviewers who have been whining about the DVD, that you're way off base. This is a 1973 film, remember, that has a lovely widescreen non-anamorphic DVD transfer with a rich, accurate color palette and excellent sharpness throughout. It is clearly NOT from a VHS original, and is one of the better looking 1970's DVD's you will see. Thirty years after the fact, with a film that will not sell a million copies, you cannot complain about the lack of special features. Thanks, Facets, for giving us a clear look at a forgotten classic!
Rating:
Summary: Great movie ... poor DVD treatment
Review: There are 2 sorts of studios: Real studios who take a movie and make a real DVD; and others, like this one, who take a VHS of the movie, and, after some self-advertising, copy the tape onto DVD putting some chapters: so, 1st the image quality is not what you're expecting from a DVD, 2nd you don't have any options for languages/subtitles and you're stuck with subtitles you'd like to get rid of. This can be understood for low-budget editions, which should not be this price: Facets Video is now on my blacklist (although I must admit no one can do worse than Madacy).
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