Ruby & Quentin (2003)

Lack of good storyline.

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

An inept but constantly talking small-time thief Quentin (Gérard Depardieu) is sent to prison after a botched bank robbery. There he shares a cell with a hardened gangster Ruby (Jean Reno) who refuses to say a word until getting out. Believing Ruby to be his new best friend, Quentin helps him to escape and tags along with him, much to Ruby's annoyance. Many crazy incidents follow, as the escapees are chased not only by the police but also by Ruby's former colleagues, led by a crime lord named Vogel (Jean-Pierre Malo).The appeal of the movie is largely built on the charisma of the two stars and many buddy movie conventions. Quentin and Ruby's initially one-sided friendship advances exactly as expected, so originality is not among this movie's achievements but who cares as long as it's funny, right? Luckily the dialogue is fairly amusing and some of the situations earn a chuckle or two, like the Ruby-lookalike horse and the cops' habit of losing their patrol cars. Perhaps the movie could have benefited from being more over the top especially during the chase scenes, as now the crime and drama aspects of the story are not very well developed (e.g. Ruby's financial schemes against his former boss and his love for a deceased woman). Adding more jokes or other entertaining scenes could have helped to make the movie more memorable, even though it is funny now, too.In any case, Depardieu and Reno have good on-screen chemistry together and make the movie very watchable for any fan of buddy comedies. Tais-toi may not be the comedy gem of the century, but it's a fun little movie all the same.

In the delicious "le Dîner De Cons" (1998) by the same director Francis Veber, Pierre Brochant (Thierry Lhermitte) says to his doctor on a dogged tone: "I've got a damn fool of world class tonight!...". The viewer who discovers "Tais-toi!" for the very first time could attribute as well this opinion to Quentin from Montargis (Gérard Depardieu) in this film. The IQ of this character is so low that the wardens in prisons and the male nurses in psychiatric hospitals can't stand him until one day, he makes the acquaintance of a taciturn inmate Ruby (Jean Reno) and thinks he's his friend because unlike all the ones Thomas met in his life, Ruby never tells him to shut up. The two men escape in a preposterous way and are soon tracked down by the police and the underworld...For many French viewers, Francis Veber is the guarantee of a quality entertaining movie. Throughout the years this respectable scenarist gained a large reputation thanks to a recognizable comic recipe: the mismatched duo of men. Two men with a very different disposition who have to be and to face together unexpected situations. This formula gave laugh-filled works like "la Chèvre" (1981), "les Fugitifs" (1986) when it wasn't pure genius with "le Dîner De Cons" I mentioned earlier.With "Tais-Toi!", he remains faithful to his cinematographic writing and coming after the dismaying "le Placard" (2001), it is a few notches above his precedent work. Of course, it never reaches the pinnacle of "le Dîner De Cons" but the Veber touch can be felt here and there. This man is a mastermind when it comes to depict the persona of his duo of men between the grouchy, ominous Ruby and his partner, the silly, simple-minded Quentin or to put verbal wit in hilarious dialogs. And it would be hard to resist taut, droll moments.If the 2003 vintage is more palatable than the 2001 one, that doesn't make a great film for all that. Apart from indisputable assets, Veber's scenario is plagued by a humdrum imagination and a lackluster directing to weave an immaculate story for our maladjusted duo of men. Most of the film consists in a chase with fights, shooting and stunts a little lazily filmed during which the director doesn't appear to be at ease in spite of the fantastic steps his tandem goes through. What also hampers the venture is its ultra-mapped direction and a patchy direction of actors. It would be hard to resist the blissful ignorant Gérard Depardieu but Jean Reno is a more debatable choice for he's unable to shade his acting even if Veber wrote him some witty lines.I would be tempted to write that this film showcases Veber's strong points and his limits. When he stays confined to the grounds of comedy, Francis Veber is in his element. But when he tries to make a foray into other cinema territories or to incorporate his comical gifts in it, laughter are too scattered even rare. Even if "Tais-toi!" isn't to be hammered, it will be soon forgotten after the screening.

That's another movie of great Francis Veber, the master of French comedy. After masterpieces like "La chèvre", "Le diner des cons" and "Le placard" Veber creates a new story, where two prisoners escape from jail. Veber's formula is always the same: putting together two people who have nothing in common, like a cat and a dog. From that we have many situations of misunderstandings.The film is fun, although not among the best Francis Veber works. The first part is great and lively, in the second one the movie loses some speed and the story is less exciting.Some moments are nevertheless memorable, for example all the prison scenes and the beginning of the friendship between Gérard Depardieu and Jean Reno. These situations are really hilarious!Depardieu and Reno are big actors and work well together. Dialogs, once again, are the main ingredient in Francis Veber style.Not a masterpiece, as I said, but enjoyable.

I watched this funny film on DVD with our family during our summer holidays 2005 in Nice, South of France. I have never heard before and I have to admit that this was one of the funniest films I've ever seen and I never laughed so much as here. Gérard Dépardieu and Jean Reno were incredibly full of fun in their roles as thieves and delivered an extraordinary performance. At the beginning I didn't recognize Dépardieu because he had a completely changed look and I mean it in a positive way.I highly recommend to see it. Rating: 8/10. If you liked it don't miss the other fun movie starring Jean Reno in "L'Enquiète Corse".