The One Man Band

1970
6.2| 1h25m| en| More Info
Released: 10 October 1970 Released
Producted By: Gaumont
Country: France
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

Evan Evans, the director of a ballet troupe, is rehearsing his next show in Monaco, in preparation for a worldwide tour. When one member of his troupe leaves to get married, Evans imposes a regime of strict discipline on his remaining dancers. The latter get their revenge by presenting Evans’ nephew Philippe, the only male member of the group, with a baby and a note claiming he is the father…

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Reviews

Kirpianuscus in essence, nice slice from "70's. atmosphere, songs, dance, relationship. at the first few, a film of Louis de Funes, not real different by many others. but this is its great virtue - a story like pretext, the little tyrannic boss and the young women with plots, secrets, charm, Olivier de Funes in middle of feelings, surprises , using teenager humor, clichés - the Sicilian family - confusion and the clear sky. all the tricks of French cinema. and the same force of seduction. because it is nice, amusing, almost lovely. and because the admiration for the work of de Funes remains at high level. this detail is the most important. and the feeling after the end of film. like delicate flavor of a lost innocent age. so, a good option for relax.
Marvin Edward G. Arnold Those were the seventies, alright. (especially for those like me who only remember them vaguely) Saturated primary colors everywhere, telephones shaped like pyramids or like molten wax, easy chairs that were all but easy to sit on, catchy music, silly lyrics. This movie is as stylized as it can be (short of a Greenaway movie) and provides silly, but stylish entertainment.Louis de Funès, at 56, shows that he is not only still the explosive comedian we all love, but that he is able to sing (in his way) and that he can even play a convincing chef-de-ballet, able to hold a candle to his female co-stars when it comes to dancing...And, as another reviewer pointed out, we come to see his softer side as well, in his relationship with his nephew (actually real-life son), "his" girls, "his" babies.The film benefits much from an excellent all-female dance chorus, and the dance numbers are catchy, and top-notch in their 1970 silliness.A very uncommon movie if you expect standard LdF fare. Plot is, of course, nonexistent as any de Funès movie, but here we have abundant song and dance numbers, a Babylonian confusion of at least five languages (shadows of Tati's "Play Time", perhaps?), a dancing (!) Louis de Funès, and, as I said, plenty of 1970 design (atrocities, if you want) in brilliant colors, including the girls' costumes, which magically change between scenes.9/10 all in all. Too many plot holes for a perfect 10, and sadly Olivier de Funès's acting talents, despite his good looks, cannot hold their ground for a lead role against his father. (He wisely chose to pursue a different career after one more movie) Yet, the movie is highly entertaining, stylish and Louis de Funès's acting makes this one his finest.
Cristi_Ciopron Daddy Funès' multifaceted career includes several bourgeois conventional comedies that we have already discussed on this site (HIBERNATUS, Oscar), and some less conventional humorous outings, such as L'HOMME ORCHESTRE and LE GRAND RESTAURANT. A comedy of music and dance, L'HOMME ORCHESTRE is an attempt at a sex comedy—with Funès in his usual sexless austere persona; he performs the head of a dance troop, as his choreographic talent allowed him.I think Funès would of made a convincing faun (Funès could have been, had he consented, an ultra—Finlay …), yet the type—casting or maybe his own ambitions and prejudices and petty bourgeois respectability—which again reverts to type—casting—kept him away from this and he promoted an asexual, grumpy sexless persona—like the irascible Evan—Evans in this comedy.L'HOMME ORCHESTRE's sexpot is a mellow blonde, Françoise, slightly plumper than the other babes in Funès' dance ensemble, and shown as conveniently loving an oldster. Another blonde, Hendrike—a young mom—seemed on the brink of taking over, but no …. So, to speak my mind, this is perhaps not a very good comedy, quite deficiently written, and one whose presumed and self—styled originality is not convincing; yet it is of course recommended to Funès fans because it features a few genuine Funès bits of 'divertissement. Except for Funès himself, nothing else is really very good in L'HOMME ORCHESTRE, and the movie looks, as I said, sadly undecided and murky. Of course such comedy—exploitation is not at all unusual in most famous comedy actors' careers. This one has the changing content of a varieties TV show; even Funès' character ceaselessly switches between the dances patron prestige and the yellow sportswear of a funny oldster ….The French popular comedies gone fancy tend to have somewhat loose structures, to look a bit pointless, to be rather vaguely paced; this one, and others like it, are not sophisticated comedies—in the sense Tati's are, but popular comedies gone fancy …. L'HOMME ORCHESTRE is indeed a bit murky, undecided about its own nature—a dance comedy, a grumpy asexual Funès comedy, Françoise's romance …--then, in the last third, a baby comedy, with the baby of one of the dancing girls …. The movie looks like a series of _divagations, and it offers only some very vague fun; anyway, even in terms of fun L'HOMME ORCHESTRE is meaningless—what was it about? It might have been about Evan—Evans' nephew, after all. The girls are nice, and the dancing numbers rather average.
6325 For lovers of this great french comedian this movie is best watched with the remote control in one hand. The story is the typical mix of little choleric Louis (playing the director of an all girl dancing group) who tries to shield them from other men so that the girls won't be distracted from their job. There are a couple of well directed scenes that provide good laughs and Louis delivers the whole range of his facial expressions that alone makes you giggle. However this time the script seems to have lacked enough ideas for a full movie, therefore you will have to sit through plenty of dancing and music and even an almost unbearable singing scene where Louis de Funes sings musical-like. Approx. half of the movie time is being consumed by music, dance and singing only - too much for a comedy.Therefore my advice: skip those dull scenes with the fast forward of your remote control and have a good laugh at Louis while he is really acting (and not dancing or singing).