This is by no means a masterpiece but it is very funny and the acting is peerless from many of the main contenders; the duo of Jerome Commandeur (to me it rings like a made-up name and if you look in wiki there is no mention of Jerome's background elsewhere you find Italian mother French father born in Argenteuil; my personal reading (I am a portrait painter who lived in Algeria) is that Jerome is a nom-de-scène this incredibly gifted acteur monikered himself with so no one could tie him to forefathers in Biskra or Sidi Bel Abbes in a country which is still in 2021 very racist as re: Moghrebi roots. That is of no import but it seems it need be said and I could be wrong but hey)and André Dussolier from La Comédie Française an institution which is like a register of excellence; the only state theatre in France to have its own permanent troupe of actors. These 2 are the core but there are others too worthy of note. The long-haired boy they travel with is also excellent in all scenes as well as the drunk bachelor who thinks he is on a bachelor party commissioned by his mates (his facial acting at the end waiting for Seb); the bespectacled son of Jerome is also very funny and has the demeanour of one you will hear about when he gets older
The tale is simple: it is a celebration of the multigenerational remembrance of SNCF night rides to the South in the hallowed months of July/August in the French summer calendar there is a montage of many slides photos and clips at the start of the film to set the scene and that is done very elegantly ...
Not much else can be said about this film without spoiling your viewing so I will stop here; it is also a celebration of the beauty of the land .... France here is as many times in other French films a fully-involved actress too ...
PS enjoy it if you are 8, 10, or 60 it is for any age.
