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I Do or Rent a Wife (international working title), is a 2006
French romantic comedy
directed by Eric Lartigau, based on an original idea by Alain Chabat
. The film stars Charlotte Gainsbourg
, Alain Chabat
and Bernadette Lafont
. It is Chabat and Gainsbourg's third collaboration, after Ils se marièrent et eurent beaucoup d'enfants
(2004) and The Science of Sleep
(2006).
), 43, happily single, mollycoddled by his family (mum and 5 sisters, known as the G7), has a successful career as a perfumer
and an easy life. Tired of taking care of him, the G7 decide he should get married within a year. The problem is Luis does not want any kind of serious relationship since they ruined his first true love. After turning down all the girls introduced to him, he gets an idea: "rent" his best friend's sister, Emma (Charlotte Gainsbourg
), turn her into the perfect bride-to-be, and make her not show up on their wedding day. That way, Luis thinks his family will leave him alone. Unfortunately for him, his family likes Emma and blames him when she apparently jilts him at the altar. He then comes up with an alternate plan to have Emma act horribly towards his family so they will not like her any more. The two begin to fall in love so Luis finally stands up to his family, confesses his schemes and finally settles down with Emma.
, he settled on a five-minute fight sequence from the Tamil Indian
film Muthu.
The film was shot in Mézy-sur-Seine
, and in different parts of Paris, including the Parisian suburb of Pantin
.
2006 in film
- Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2006...
French romantic comedy
Romantic Comedy
Romantic Comedy can refer to* Romantic Comedy , a 1979 play written by Bernard Slade* Romantic Comedy , a 1983 film adapted from the play and starring Dudley Moore and Mary Steenburgen...
directed by Eric Lartigau, based on an original idea by Alain Chabat
Alain Chabat
Alain Chabat is a French actor and director who appeared in La Cité de la peur, French Twist, The Taste of Others and The Science of Sleep.- Life and career :Chabat was born in Oran, French Algeria. He is Jewish....
. The film stars Charlotte Gainsbourg
Charlotte Gainsbourg
Charlotte Lucy Gainsbourg is an Anglo-French actress and singer. After releasing an album with her father at the age of fifteen, more than twenty years passed before she released two albums as an adult to commercial and critical success...
, Alain Chabat
Alain Chabat
Alain Chabat is a French actor and director who appeared in La Cité de la peur, French Twist, The Taste of Others and The Science of Sleep.- Life and career :Chabat was born in Oran, French Algeria. He is Jewish....
and Bernadette Lafont
Bernadette Lafont
Bernadette Lafont is a French actress and the mother of Pauline Lafont .Bernadette Lafont won the César Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for L'Effrontée...
. It is Chabat and Gainsbourg's third collaboration, after Ils se marièrent et eurent beaucoup d'enfants
Ils Se Marièrent et Eurent Beaucoup d'Enfants
Happily Ever After, known in French as Ils se marièrent et eurent beaucoup d'enfants , is a 2004 French film. The film is written and directed by Yvan Attal, produced by Claude Berri, and starring Charlotte Gainsbourg and Yvan Attal.It was released in English in North America...
(2004) and The Science of Sleep
The Science of Sleep
The Science of Sleep is a 2006 French film written and directed by Michel Gondry. The film stars Gael García Bernal, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Miou-Miou, and Alain Chabat.-Plot:...
(2006).
Plot summary
Luis (Alain ChabatAlain Chabat
Alain Chabat is a French actor and director who appeared in La Cité de la peur, French Twist, The Taste of Others and The Science of Sleep.- Life and career :Chabat was born in Oran, French Algeria. He is Jewish....
), 43, happily single, mollycoddled by his family (mum and 5 sisters, known as the G7), has a successful career as a perfumer
Perfumer
A perfumer is a term used for an expert on creating perfume compositions, sometimes referred to affectionately as a Nose due to their fine sense of smell and skill in producing olfactory compositions...
and an easy life. Tired of taking care of him, the G7 decide he should get married within a year. The problem is Luis does not want any kind of serious relationship since they ruined his first true love. After turning down all the girls introduced to him, he gets an idea: "rent" his best friend's sister, Emma (Charlotte Gainsbourg
Charlotte Gainsbourg
Charlotte Lucy Gainsbourg is an Anglo-French actress and singer. After releasing an album with her father at the age of fifteen, more than twenty years passed before she released two albums as an adult to commercial and critical success...
), turn her into the perfect bride-to-be, and make her not show up on their wedding day. That way, Luis thinks his family will leave him alone. Unfortunately for him, his family likes Emma and blames him when she apparently jilts him at the altar. He then comes up with an alternate plan to have Emma act horribly towards his family so they will not like her any more. The two begin to fall in love so Luis finally stands up to his family, confesses his schemes and finally settles down with Emma.
Production
Alain Chabat originally came up with the idea for the film and planned to produce the film and write the script. Director Eric Lartigau asked him to play the role of Luis so he rewrote the character as an older man. Over a five-year period Chabat's original script went through seven different rewrites by four other scriptwriters. Chabat decided to include a scene where the character of Emma watches an action film. After comparing different Chinese kung fu filmsMartial arts film
Martial arts film is a film genre. A sub-genre of the action film, martial arts films contain numerous fights between characters, usually as the films' primary appeal and entertainment value, and often as a method of storytelling and character expression and development. Martial arts are frequently...
, he settled on a five-minute fight sequence from the Tamil Indian
Cinema of India
The cinema of India consists of films produced across India, which includes the cinematic culture of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal. Indian films came to be followed throughout South Asia and...
film Muthu.
The film was shot in Mézy-sur-Seine
Mézy-sur-Seine
Mézy-sur-Seine is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France.-References:*...
, and in different parts of Paris, including the Parisian suburb of Pantin
Pantin
Pantin is a commune in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe. Its post code is 93500.Pantin was once the site of Motobecane's operations...
.
Box office reception
Released on November 1, 2006 in France, the film went straight to #1 at the box office, grossing over a million tickets. It spent six consecutive weeks in the box office top 10. By December 19, the film had reached the 3 million tickets sold mark. It eventually sold just over 3.5 million tickets, making it the second most successful film of 2007 at the French box office.Awards and nominations
- César Awards (France)
- Nominated: Best Actor – Leading Role (Alain Chabat)
- Nominated: Best Actress – Leading Role (Charlotte Gainsbourg)
- Nominated: Best Actress – Supporting Role (Bernadette Lafont)
External links
Official site- Prête-moi ta main at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- I Do (How to Get Married and Stay Single) trailer (in French with English subtitles) Prête-moi ta main at allocine.fr - pics, trailers