The Bronzed, Tanned people go skiing, Santa Claus is trash. Three monuments of French comedy whose lines have become cult. These three films were born thanks to a group of inseparable friends, the Splendid troupe.
Composed of Christian Clavier, Michel Blanc, Gérard Jugnot, Thierry Lhermitte, Josiane Balasko, Marie-Anne Chazel and Bruno Moynotthis collective has enjoyed many successes since the end of the 1970s. At the time, based in a café-theatre on rue des Lombard in Paris, these actors experienced their first major success together, thanks to a social satire inspired by their experience at Club Med : Loves, shellfish and crustaceans.
A first collective work which became a very big success on stage and then in the cinema, since the troupe decided to make an adaptation on the big screen
“Les Bronzés”, a cult film with a modest budget
With a modest budget, in 1978, the joyful troupe set off to film The Bronzed in Ivory Coast. To save as much as possible on costs, everyone pitches in. Gérard Jugnot’s partner becomes a costume designer. The assistants play extras.
For certain scenes, however, we pulled out all the stops. For example, when Jean-Claude Dusse, played by Michel Blanc, comes out of the water naked, his private parts covered in algae, the latter having been specially imported from Brittany in a refrigerated cargo plane.
If the critics are not kind to this first film, the success in theaters is very real since 2.3 million spectators will watch this first opus directed by Patrice Leconte.
“Tanned people go skiing”
Exhilarated by a first success, the troupe nevertheless hesitates to give it a follow-up: The Bronzed go skiing. Michel Blanc will not participate in the writing of the film, but will still return to his role of Jean-Claude Dusse, with even more cult replicas.
Filming in the Alps is more trying for Josiane Balasko, who had never skied, and has to face the cold. In theaters, the success was more modest, with a million fewer spectators, but the film acquired growing fame thanks to its television rebroadcasts, thus becoming a classic.
During filming, Michel Blanc also experienced a nightmare with the famous chairlift scene. The actor was left hanging for hours overnight below -15°C. To warm up, the team sent him soups and hot toddies using a rope system.
The Bronzed celebrate Christmas
In 1982, the troupe reinvented itself with a black comedy based on their eponymous play Santa Claus is trash. For her character Zézette, Marie-Anne Chazel was inspired by a homeless person in the neighborhood who collects everything lying around in her shopping cart to survive. The actress makes her role her own, even wearing a dental prosthesis to create a hissing sound.
The film, named during filming The Bronzed celebrate Christmas, underwent some censorship upon release. Its title does not please everyone and its poster is banned in the Paris metro. Yet, Santa Claus is trash achieved immediate success with 1.5 million admissions, also becoming a cult work.
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