Sur un arbre perche (1971)

Directed by: Serge Korber | 91 minutes | comedy | Actors: Louis de Funès, Geraldine Chaplin, Olivier De Funès, Alice Sapritch, Paul Préboist, Roland Armontel, Franco Volpi, Jean Panisse, Hans Meyer, Daniel Bellus, Jean-Jacques Delbo, Darsac, Pascal Mazzotti, Danielle Durou, Fernand Berset, Jean Hebey, Fernand Sardou

Movies that are set in one, limited, space can work very well. Usually the claustrophobic aspect is exploited for optimal dramatic or nail-biting effect. A confrontation is often provoked with all the emotional discharge that entails. For example, ‘Phonebooth’ was an effective little thriller in which a murderer prevented Colin Farrell from leaving a phone booth, and the drama ‘Tape’ managed to hide Ethan Hawke’s cunning schemes until the last minute with strong dialogue and natural acting. Pandora’s box opened. ‘Sur un arbre perché’, starring the famous French joker Louis de Funès, uses the small space for comic effect, with a surprisingly successful result.

The film starts with a nice fast tempo and a comic opening montage in which it is briefly shown who Henri Roubier (De Funès) is, complete with an ironic voice-over. In any case, the businessman Roubier turns out not to be really conscientious, and certainly not people-friendly, at first. When he is saddled with two hitchhikers (three if the dog is counted) during a traffic jam, he is very upset and he kicks the accelerator of his thick American convertible. Resulting in a few nice shots of the car tearing through the mountains. But this rushed situation turns out to be almost fatal for the three when they plunge into the depths with their car and all from a high cliff. The screen goes black, but guess what: it’s not the end. They all ended up, very classically, on a pine tree protruding from the rock wall. So a true cliffhanger.

And hang they do. Almost the entire movie long. It is quite a challenge to keep the film interesting for the entire runtime while they are continuously on the tree, but the director manages to do this for quite a long time. The humor, in terms of effectiveness, proceeds in waves, but the average is positive. It starts frantic and hilarious when the slightest movement causes the car to tip over, and everyone at their own pace begins to realize what’s going on (after their unconsciousness). The dog is also a successful addition to the cast and provides several comedic moments. First he’s in the glove compartment, then he crawls on the hood of the car (which almost causes the thing to fall), and just as nice is the moment that he dangles from a branch of the car from his own belt. Somewhere halfway through the film, when hunger and food shortage strike in the car, Henri even sees a tasty snack in the cute four-legged friend. Incidentally, De Funès’ toupee can almost be called a character, so often this hairy patch is a source of humor.

It’s hard to come up with new, humorous moments all the time, so eventually it all inevitably gets a bit far fetched. Occupants taking off their clothes in the car and dancing when it starts to rain, or a news item about an escaped vampire who gives De Funès nightmares, are examples of scenes that get a little dragged in. Furthermore, it is a smart addition to provide De Funès with a small TV, which he has had with him all along. This allows for a deeper look into the backgrounds of his character and the other occupants of the car, which provides the necessary variety and context.

Much of the film – over-the-top or not – is comical or “substantive”, but some parts are clearly meant to be filler and aren’t very funny or just take too long. The rescue in the last act of the film features funny cynical commentary by the on-site reporter and contains fun scenes with a (drunk) pastor with laughs, but this episode is simply too long. He seems intended to supplement the meager story and to be able to get to the already economical playing time of just under one and a half hours. Fifteen minutes could have been cut from the film.

‘Sur un arbre perché’ is an entertaining, original print, with De Funès in excellent form, and a premise that lasts surprisingly long. What does it matter then that the other occupants in the car are not very interesting (if Geraldine Chaplin is in her underwear for half the movie, a lot has already been won) and the tension can’t be held all the time. The humor carries the film, and even the camera work is impressive. This one is sometimes even of a poetic beauty, as in the scene in which a bottle-with-letter in it floats on a small parachute over the bay and slowly ends up on a table on a terrace (memories of Albert Lamorisse’s classic ‘Le Ballon Rouge’ calling). So great entertainment.