Clochemerle [DVD]

I remember watching Clochemerle when it first aired on television. It was funny then, it is funny now. It would probably be frowned upon by the delicate little flowers who are offended by absolutely everything, BUT it is a very cleverly construed story with some excellent acting.

Clochemerle is a nine-part 1972 BBC adaptation of Gabriel Chevallier's 1934 book. It has a good pedigree, with narration by Peter Ustinov, script by Galton and Simpson and starring Cyril Cusack. Supporting roles are taken by names and faces familiar to audiences of the day, among them Wendy Hiller, Bernard Bresslaw and Nigel Green.Despite these advantages it hasn't stood the test of time and will be unlikely to appeal to those too young to remember its original airing. The humour is largely more subtle than the in yer face style of today and it suffers from lengthy dialogue. Some episodes consist almost entirely of single conversations between characters and a couple of the principal actresses are unconvincingly voice dubbed. The actors make no attempt to sound French, so the cast utilize a wide and representative range of British accents.These negatives aside, it's otherwise a witty and well-constructed farce centred around the erection of a gent's urinal in sleepy Clochmerle, a wine-producing village in the Beaujolais region. The wily Mayor had it built to win him votes and the local bibulous blokes are happy to frequent it. The town's pious, elderly spinster is not amused as it sits not only outside the church but also beneath her window. The spectacle and odour which daily assails her senses causes her to stir up support for its demolition and she embarks on a moral crusade to achieve its removal. Matters soon get out of hand and the ramifications spread far beyond Clochemerle's borders.When originally broadcast it was post-watershed, due to its focus on the bedroom shenanigans of the local strumpets, the fornications of the village priest and the occasional bit of bad (not obscene) language. Some of the humour is still a bit ribald, but otherwise passes for no more than cheeky nowadays.Picture quality is not good, with many grainy and fuzzy images and sound quality is also below par, but this should be no surprise given the age of the format. It certainly would benefit from some restoration if that were possible and any enterprising programme makers out there might consider the story worthy of a remake. Extras are text bio's and the collection is on two disks.

Some people may find this to be a bit slow compared with many of today's comedies but there is a lot of quiet humour to be found here

Several reviewers have commented on the poor image quality resulting from the very old videotape master that was used to make the DVD version. This is true, and at the same time utterly irrelevant. Not only is the story charming and devious, the acting suitably under-played, the dialog amusing and the non-verbal interactions absolutely hilarious, but the camerawork and direction are equally faultless. They simply don't write scripts any more than assume intelligence on the part of the director and viewer, so that volumes can be conveyed in a single glance. This aspect of Clochmerle is perhaps its outstanding attribute and should be savored. Even the bit-parts are brilliantly done. Perhaps the most amusing and impressive aspect of the series is that each incident, each twist of the plot, is essentially a miniature that conveys a truth about the larger world. The dysfunction of the Third Republic is captured by the sequence in which an order from the Minister is passed down the chain of fonctionnaires until it reaches two gentlemen in a cellar who make choices by throwing darts at a board. Their decision then flows upwards and has enormous unintended consequences. Likewise the final episode in which Clochmerle's mayor meets the Cardinal in the presence of the President of the Republic. At first they see each other as potential enemies but very quickly realize they can, together, very efficiently extort almost unlimited funds from the State, to the benefit of their separate constituencies. And it's all done with glances and oblique comments.So if you enjoy subtle, funny, pointed and absolutely hilarious period comedy please don't worry about the quality of the image on screen. Sit back, imagine you're in a small provincial theater with imperfect lighting and old props but blessed with absolutely superlative cast and direction, and enjoy the show.

I remember watching this on television many years ago and, on watching it now, I found there were many parts that I had forgotten. It was wonderful to see it again. An excellent buy and well worth it for this gentle, funny film.

Having spent a year in Macon as a student (1970-71), with frequent tours of the Beaujolais region, this brought back so much nostalgia and reminiscences of happy days amid wine, sun and beautiful countryside.The series itself is a wonderfully gentle satire on life in a small village and the casting and acting are superb. Bravo !