Coco is a 2009 French comedy film written, directed, and starring Gad Elmaleh

Gad Elmaleh

Gad Elmaleh is a French-Moroccan stand-up comedian and actor. His latest show is called Papa est en haut . He has starred in several feature films, including Coco, Hors de prix, La Doublure and Midnight in Paris.- Early years :Elmaleh was born in Casablanca, Morocco...

. The film is based on a character sketch he created for his one-man show "La Vie Normale". The film earned $8.5 million in its opening weekend at the French box office, and went on to gross $11.7 million in the European market. Although it was a box office success, Coco was not well-received by critics. It received only one star out of four from Première

Premiere (magazine)

Premiere was an American and New York City-based film magazine published by Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S., published between the years 1987 and 2007. The original version of the magazine, Première , was started in France in 1976 and is still being published there.-History:The magazine originally...

, Paris Match

Paris Match

Paris Match is a French weekly magazine. It covers major national and international news along with celebrity lifestyle features. It was founded in 1949 by the industrialist Jean Prouvost....

, and Télérama

Télérama

Télérama is a weekly French magazine owned by Le Monde S.A. Its primary contents are television and radio listings, though the magazine also prints film, theatre, music and book reviews, as well as cover stories and feature articles of cultural interest. The name is a contraction of its earlier...

and two stars from Elle

Elle (magazine)

Elle is a worldwide magazine of French origin that focuses on women's fashion, beauty, health, and entertainment. Elle is also the world's largest fashion magazine. It was founded by Pierre Lazareff and his wife Hélène Gordon in 1945. The title, in French, means "she".-History:Elle was founded in...

and Le Journal du Dimanche

Le Journal du Dimanche

Le Journal du Dimanche is a French weekly newspaper. It is only published on Sundays.-History:The newspaper was created by Pierre_Lazareffin 1948. It now belongs to the Lagardère Group, through Hachette Filipacchi Médias...

.

Synopsis

Coco is a wealthy Sephardic Jewish

Sephardi Jews

Sephardi Jews is a general term referring to the descendants of the Jews who lived in the Iberian Peninsula before their expulsion in the Spanish Inquisition. It can also refer to those who use a Sephardic style of liturgy or would otherwise define themselves in terms of the Jewish customs and...

 businessman and an immigrant to France. After 15 years of financial success (due to his invention of a new type of sparkling water) he decides to throw an enormous bar mitzvah celebration for his son Samuel. Determined that the celebration will be the most fantastic event of the year, Coco alienates his entire family as he plans for the gala.