Mandibles (2021)

“Un film de Quentin Dupieux”. Five words you’ll read on-screen and either beam with jubilation or roll your eyes at the sight of. Or both.

Here on this tiny island we call the Great Britain, rarely do get the chance to experience a think piece by Dupieux, be it a theatrical release or home physical release. Of his [now] nine films as a writer-director, only three have seen a wider release in the UK outside of film festivals. The infamous Rubber in 2011 and more recently, the totally bonkers Deerskin (Le Daim) starring Jean Dujardin. Swiftly following the 2021 French comedy horror…from 2019…is Dupieux’s next buzzworthy film, Mandibles (Mandibules).

Starring past collaborator (Keep an Eye Out) (Au poste!) Grégoire Ludig and David Marsais,Mandibles tells the tale of two simple-minded friends who find themselves burdened with an oversized fly and decide to train it up for it to earn them all the riches of the world.

Do you remember that one Treehouse of Horror episode on The Simpsons? The one where Bart switches heads with a housefly and is horrifying to look at? Well, picture that fly’s head, the sheer size of it and that’s pretty much what you’ve got inMandibles. A giant fly with a giant body. Not quite Jeff GoldblumSeth Brundle of The Fly, but equally as striking to look at.

Living on the outskirts of society, Manu (Ludig) is a rugged, shaggy, homeless dosser who’ll do just about anything to make himself a quick buck. Set with the task of picking up and delivering a sacred briefcase for someone of tremendous wealth, so begins Manu’s quest, all on the promise of a measly €500-reward.

Having “acquired” a car from an unfortunate civilian, Manu asks the assistance of an old friend, Jean-Gab (Marsais). Agreeing to the fortuitous opportunity, Jean-Gab rides shotgun with Manu as they begin their short road trip to collect the lucrative briefcase – of which the contents they aren’t allowed to known about.

Only a few miles into Manu and Jean-Gab’s voyage, the two veer off the road to inspect a suspicious noise they believe to be coming from the “borrowed” car. Upon inspection, they find a whopping great big housefly in the trunk of the Mercedes. Both respectively quite calm about their recent discovery, Jean-Gab comes up with the (not so) ingenious plan of training the fly, “like a monkey” for the two to obtain as much wealth as they see fit. And with no hesitation whatsoever, Manu agrees diverts from the task that got him into this very peculiar circumstance to begin with.

Taping its wings down so it can’t fly away and escape, Jean-Gab takes responsibility of taking care of “Dominique” and training her. Feeding it an assortment of flavours of cat food and using pet toys to lure it into playing fetch, Jean-Gab seemingly builds quite the bond with Dominique. Meanwhile Manu is left with the responsibility attempting ways of scoring the three more money for food so they can not only survive, but train Dominique quicker so they can obtain that wealth much, much quicker.

The comedy of Mandibles is very similar to that of Farrelly brothersbuddy comedyDumb and Dumber, minus the incessant slapstick physical comedy. The road trip aspect of the film is uncanny, as is its two main characters. Manu and Jean-Gab reach like-for-like Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dunne levels of idiocy in Dupieux’s film. They’re both well-meaning but complete morons with this foolish idea that an excessively-sized fly might grant them prosperity.Ludig Marsais bounce off of each other in perfect harmony! They really are as brilliant as Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels, which is high praise coming from somebody that identifies Dumb and Dumber as one of his all-time favourites. Manu and Jean-Gab also share similarities with another cinematic slacker duo, Bill and Ted. The two have their very own signature handshake, the “Toro!”. It is used excessively throughout the runtime and becomes infectious. Believe me, when you see it you’ll want to start doing it with your friends.

Through a short series of mishaps and misadventures, Manu and Jean-Gab find themselves winding up in a serendipitous encounter with passers-by that land them in a place of shelter, with a constant source of food and the freedom to train Dominique at their leisure. That is, right until they don’t.

In a quick turn of events, Manu and Jean-Gab…and Dominique are busted by a handicapped young lady who had her doubts with the two petulant buffoons from the get-go. Only able to shout at the very top of her voice every time she speaks because of a skiing accident, Agns (Adèle Exarchopoulos) uncovers Dominique after “Dumb and Dumber” lied about having a pet chihuahua in their chosen bedroom at a stranger’s family home. And in a very problematic but disturbingly funny scene involving Dominique and the completely unadorable Rat Fink lookalike, it becomes apparent the two have been rumbled after a couple of days of hospitality and must make their way back onto the road immediately!

Without giving away any major spoilers, after an hour and fifteen minutes into the runtime when the end credits begin to roll and Metronomy’s playful lounge music score begins to close out the film, you’ll snap out of the fever dream, feel the ear-to-ear smile on your face and have one last laugh in the wake of the strange series of events you’ve just witness unfold. The originality, coupled with the niche brand of humour Mandibles offers audiences escapism very few like Dupieux can offer. He is a real master at his craft and it’s becoming more and more apparent with each body of work he creates.

Unlike prior works by Dupieux, you don’t have to dig very deep to find the comedy within Mandibles. There’s no deeper meaning amidst the kook. It is there on the surface layer for those who have a weirder, darker and more open sense of humour. It isn’t quite as thought-provoking as Deerskin is or as nutty as Rubber.Mandibles is much simpler and much sillier, as a reflection of its two protagonists. It is another offbeat, off-kilter original absurdist comedy film from Mr. Bizarro himself, Mr. Oizo. Undoubtedly not for everyone,Mandibles stands as Quentin Dupieux’s most uncomplicated film to-date and a good introduction into the auteurism of he.

★★★★1/2


Comedy, Fantasy | Canada, 2020 | 15 | 17th September 2021 (UK Cinema)/20th September (Digital UK) | Altitude Films | Dir.Quentin Dupieux | Grégoire Ludig, David Marsais, Adèle Exarchopoulos


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