My Father the Hero (1991)

The greatest movie ever made..!

Excellent, Without a doubt!!

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

Please do not pass this film by, it is worth all the effort to find it (I found mine on Amazon co.u.k), and similar to other forum users I watched the USA version first. Without going over the film details all of which have been written in this forum and in much better detail than I can muster, all I can say that this should not be compared to the USA version as the French version is far superior in every way.I gave this a 7.5 out of 10, one point missing as the transfer from a VHS take can only be considered very poor, but having said that I would not part with my DVD copy for ten times what I paid for it. Enough said, this is a top French comedy, and Gerard Depardieu out acts everyone again, this is a forgotten French gem :)

I was 13 or 14 when I first saw this movie on TV while surfing channels some 14 years ago. I hadn't seen it since then and tracking down a copy proved to be harder than I thought until a week ago when I finally found a site selling it with subtitles.As a 14 year old I had an enormous crush on Marie Gillain who was 15-16 at the time and no wonder: she has turned into a most beautiful woman since (well, she already was back then!). But watching the movie again, it became clear that my fond memories of the movie were caused by more than just a teenagers crush!The "theme song" (Sans mensonges) is great - sung by Marie Gillain - and explains how life without lies would be dull and sad. Even though it was 14 years ago and I only saw the movie once, I immediately recalled it fondly. It's that memorable! This movie has got to be my favorite romantic comedy. It makes you laugh yet also touches you on many occasion. Seeing how a father tries to hold on to his daughter, afraid to lose her, yet at the same time his love for her makes him let go of her in the end. Seeing him help his daughter out of the mess she got herself into. It all adds so much to the character of the movie.And of course the very touchy ending where he stands at the window, seeing her wave back from the boat, thoughts going through his mind. Is he losing her? Will the love for boys get between them?And then the end credits start rolling with the song "Ca va" (sung by Depardieu himself), singing about how he'll be okay - and even if he won't be, he won't blame her.This is what makes a great movie - it touches me far more than any Hollywood movie has managed to do in a loooong time. These actors are not characters - they're real people. They act realistically and not "theatrical". The plausible stories makes it all so much more powerful.A final warning though: don't see the English version first. This is the one to see. They're very similar but the actors and acting (not to mention the location) is much better in this original version.

I actually discovered that there were two versions of this film, both by the same director, both including Gérard Depardieu, but in the first one, most of the actors are French and it is set on the Isle of Mauritius, and the second, the characters bar Depardieu are mostly American and the film is set in the West Indies or Bahamas but not Mauritius. Why make two films with the same plot ? I just don't know.In my opinion, the better of the two was the first one which is set in Mauritius. Unfortunately, this one is NOT available on DVD and the other IS !! I bought the DVD, thinking I was getting the FIRST but got the SECOND ! Very confusing, especially when the main actor is the same person.I preferred the characters in the first film and found it funnier..but that is of course just personal judgment. I was also pleased to see shots of Mauritius which is a lovely place. In the first film, Depardieu was speaking French, his native language, in the second he was speaking English ......he was obviously less at ease in the humorous situations !! To understand this you need to be able to speak French and, more important, heard Depardieu get irritated in his mother tongue. It's indescribably funny and cannot be translated into another language. That's what I think clinches it for this first of the two films !!

"Mon père ce héros" is a quote of Victor Hugo, the most famous French poet of all time. And although the movie is very realistic, kind of true-to-life situation, it is full of poetry. It shows one more time that Love is a big awkward thing for everyone. It is a very nice comedy, rather funny and moving. The movie helps to realize the gap existing between a father and a 14-year-old teenager. All the actors (not only Depardieu And Marie Gillain) are sincere while the main subject is "lies" !! I deeply recommend you to see this film and not its remake - a bit too tasteless (actually the dialogs are exactly the same). However, if you want to spend a good time in front of your telly, I believe Mon père ce Héros to be the perfect choice.