Shut Up! (Tais-Toi!)

This is an absolutely hilarious film done in true French style with the two greatest side-kicks you could ask for. If this doesn't get you into world cinema nothing will. Jean and Gerard show they can do comedy to the heights they do drama. Exceptional! Just a heads up the blu-ray only has German/French language subtitles,no English!!! Can't find a French copy with English subtitles but the Thai version on sale does have English subtitles. The blu-ray is excellent quality,a much clearer picture with DTS HD 5:1 sound but the language barrier so why on sale here I don't know. Ironically the Thai version does but on dvd only. Get the widescreen version although you won't get the extras. Someone pleeeeeasssee do a UK friendly version! See this film if you don't mind falling off your sofa laughing. I'll never look at mental hospitals in the same way again. Vive le France!!!

Gerard Depardieu plays Quentin from Montargis. He's a small-time criminal, often ending up in gaol partly due to the fact that he cannot stop talking. When he's put in the same cell as big-time crook and hardman Jean Reno, who doesn't talk at all, Depardieu mistakes Reno's silence for a willingness to listen and so thinks he's found a friend for life. Both manage to escape from gaol with the aid of a drunken crane operator. Then, with the additional help of laxative jam, a whoopee cushion, and some women's clothing, they try to enact some natural justice.If you liked `Le Diner de Cons' (`The Idiots' Dinner') or `Le Placard' (`The Closet') - or even `La Cage aux Folles' (`The Birdcage'), you'll like this. The link between them all is the writer-director Francis Veber. The laughter starts almost straight away as Depardieu tries to rob a bureau de change, but finds they only have Japanese yen. And there is a good cameo role for Andre Dussollier as the psychiatrist.Alas, there are no extras. There must have been some hilarious out-takes: I cannot imagine that Jean Reno kept a straight face throughout all the filming.

Gerard Depardieu simply shines in this film but that is not to say that Jean Reno isn't his equal. With this much talent on the screen together it is hard to choose the better performance of the two but Depardieu's performance just inches him in front.It is very hard to portray an idiot, too much appears over the top and too little falls short of the mark but Depardieu is brilliant, he is so annoying that ten minutes with him in real life and you would want to choke him. But look at his facial expressions and you see a seminal performance, you can see why he is considered one of France's finest actors.Jean Reno's reaction to the idiotic antics are equally well defined.The film is an unusual premise for a comedy but thanks to the direction of Francis Veber it is a delight to watch.His two other films 'The Closet' (another brilliant performance from Depardieu) and Le Dîner De Cons are both well worth purchasing

Some films are not necessarily great in themselves but provide a useful vehicle for their stars to shine. Tais-toi! features both Jean Reno and Gérard Depardieu in good form and playing well against each other and, for that reason alone, is worth watching. The plot is unashamedly daft but is very entertaining and, like all good films, sneaks in its own little messages about the value of friendship and the importance of trust in our cynical, dog-eat-dog world. Depardieu has a proven track record in comedy but Reno is better known as the enigmatic hard man: the strong, silent type. Here he plays the straight man to Depardieu's funny man and it works beautifully to make a great pairing. I don't think this is one of the best films ever made but it is definitely worth watching when you want a bit of good, old-fashioned, escapist entertainment!

It is a real pity that this film isn't available in a synchronised English version. This is the French original version with English subtitles. I have also watched it synchronised in German before. It is absolutely hilarious. Jean Reno as the professional tough criminal who is paired up against his will with Gerard Dépardieu as the mentally impaired and thus unsuccessful thief, make me laugh tears every time I watch this film.

Silly but fun

An outstanding film, that reinvents the concept of dynamic duo, and gives us a refreshingly enjoyable comedy that is bound to stay with the viewer. Saying anything else would be rather unfair, and it's best that this film be watched before it's commented upon. Recommended.

Saw this at the cinema several years ago and thought that it would not be as funny the second time around. I was wrong, it was!