Main Cast: Pierre Richard, Bernard Blier, Jean Rochefort, Mireille Darc
Release Year: 1972
Country: FR
Run Time: 90 minutes
Plot
In this wacky French spy comedy, the chief of the French secret service wants very much to keep his job and stoops to chicanery to prevent rivals from closing in. He points to a man chosen at random from a crowd of people (Pierre Richard), and identifies him to his rival as an important spy who must be followed at all costs. In fact, he is François, a bumbling, good-natured musician. However, his lack of any notable spy-like failings only serves to convince his watchers that he is more skillful and professional than they. At every turn, they redouble their efforts, leading to many absurd situations. For instance, they send a beautiful woman to try to get his secrets from him. Instead, convinced of his innocence, she falls in love with him. This extremely popular film became actor Pierre Richard's signature role, and he often used the character's name in other films. This was one of the first successful screenplays by Francis Veber, who went on to write the screenplay for La Cage Aux Folles and many other successful comedies. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
Review
An unpretentious and thoroughly engaging spy comedy, The Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe is, quite simply, a lot of fun. This is a lot harder to pull off than one might suspect, as can be witnessed with a quick viewing of the inferior "Americanization," The Man with One Red Shoe, which exerts a lot of effort to be funny and charming and ends up feeling a tad desperate. Blond, on the other hand, is a perfect, light soufflé of a movie. As with all soufflés, even the slightest variation from the recipe can bring about dismal results, but Blond's co-writer/director, Yves Robert, makes sure that this never happens. It's telling that, even though Blond is a farce, it's not a screamingly funny film. There are some moments that are hilarious, but most of the laughs are solid and appreciative, rather than hysterical. Yet, the viewer leaves the film more than satisfied, for the laughs are all part of an entertaining whole. While his characters are not needlessly complicated, they are presented as individuals about whom the viewer has very strong feelings -- affection for Francois, contempt for Milan, curiosity for Toulouse, etc. This makes the viewer feel invested in their fates, a necessary ingredient for almost any film, but especially for a plot-heavy farce. Blond's biggest asset, however, is its title actor. Pierre Richard is simply delightful, a bumbling, naïve innocent who elicits immediate affection almost from the start. His timing is impeccable, he can be both nuanced and over-the-top, and his physicals comedic skills are excellent. Jean Rochefort, Mireille Darc, Jean Carmet and the rest of the supporting cast are all very good -- but it's Richard's film all the way. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Arlette Balkis - Mme. Boudart; Maurice Barrier; Robert Caccia - M. Boudart; Jean Carmet - Maurice; Robert Castel - Georghiu; Robert Dalban - Faux Livreur; Paul Le Person - Perrache; Jean Obe - Botrel; Jean Saudray - Poucet; Yves Robert - Chef d'Orchestre; Colette Castel - Paulette; Stephane Bouy; Marcel Gassouk
Filmed in French, as of 2007 it is available for sale on DVD with English subtitles on the Russian release, with subtitles in English or Russian, or audio in Russian or French.
The chief of the French secret service, Louis Toulouse, in a plot to discredit his second in command, (mon petit) Bernard Milan—who is himself plotting to discredit Toulouse so that he can supplant him)—sends his assistant, Perrache, to choose at random someone from the crowd of travelers arriving at the Orly airport, having made Milan believe that Perrache has gone to meet a master spy who will expose Milan's treachery.
Perrache happens to select François Perrin, an unsuspecting violinist, who is noticeable because as the result of a practical joke he has arrived wearing a black shoe on one foot and a reddish-brown one on the other. Milan takes the bait and immediately begins a series of attempts to find out what Perrin knows—blind to the fact that Perrin knows nothing at all about espionage, although he is an expert on music. Milan's machinations involve Perrin in a series of increasingly peculiar adventures, and although he is largely oblivious to the mayhem Milan causes to occur around him, he can't help noticing the beautiful femme fatale, Christine. In a startling scene, she greets him at her door in a demure high-necked black-velvet dress, then turns around and shows that the dress is backless, displaying discreet buttock cleavage. (A similar dress is seen once again—at a symphony concert—in the sequel film, Le Retour du Grand Blond.) A slapstick love scene ensues, followed by more mayhem and treachery, leading to the death of several secret-service thugs and the downfall of Milan. Toulouse watches the chaos serenely.
The film ends, as it had begun, at Orly. Perrin is pushing a huge Louis Vuitton steamer trunk in an airport luggage cart, talking softly to it. (Apparently Christine is inside.) Their destination is Rio.
