"Les veinards" is a movie made up of sketches ,two of which are funny ,the others are bombs .
Segment one: "the mink" .François Périer ,Mireille Darc .
A maid wins a mink ;her employer needs it because he's got a business meeting with an important client whose wife wears a leopard-skin coat ; he wants his own wife to look as chic as her ,but the servant and her mistress are at odds .Eventually ,they have to reverse the roles ,and it's the maid who dines with her employer in the Italian restaurant;This situation leads to lots of mistakes and misunderstandings .
Directing is undistinguished ,but both Périer and Darc have plenty of go and the screenplay ,with its sudden new developments ,is funny.
Things go awry in sketches 2, 3 and 4 and you should use your fast forward button and directly go to segment 5.
Segment 2:"the gastronomic meal" .Francis Blanche .
A guy wins a meal in a renowned restaurant ; this one takes up back to the worst of the silent era; the gags are antediluvian and repetitive (notably ,that of the chair)
Segment 3:"an evening with a star(let) ; Pierre Doris,Darry Cowl.
It's all the more disappointing since it was made by Philippe De Broca ,a director known for his elegance: his sketch is vulgar and devoid of interest.
Segment 4 :"the yatch " ;Pierre Mondy , Jacqueline Maillan,Jean Lefèvre .
Brilliant on stage ,Maillan would lose 80% of her comic appeal on screen ;and anyway the screenplay is repetitive and quite dull after a while.
Segment 5 " the jackpot" Louis De Funès , Blanchette Brunoy,Noel Roquevert .
De Funès 's presence is cause for celebration after three horrible stories ; he's perfect as a not-so-dumb peasant who comes to Paris to be given his prize : 100 million francs! The screenplay is rather inventive ( the "birds" in the suitcase , the bubble head wife and daughter who do not have a clue , the false thief , the lesson of economics ....)and De Funès is at the top of his game.
Two good sketches,you hardly make it on the percentages.
