What it’s about
Poor Parisian artist Michel (Lefevre), hounded by creditors, discovers he’s won a lottery, but the winning ticket is in a jacket he’s misplaced. The frenzied process by which he reclaims it ducking his lenders, scrambling madly through the streets creates zany comic sequences reminiscent of the Marx Brothers.
Why we love it
At the dawn of sound, director René Clair brought us this delicious farcical concoction, imbued with a spirited, joyously romantic flavor only the French can produce. It is unalloyed fun to watch the cast of kooks — able performers all! — run circles around each other while occasionally bursting into song. The sequence in which Michel and Company make a grab for the coat during a stage performance of “La Boheme” is a highlight. Fresh and timeless.