This French comedy drama progresses along predictable, sentimental and somewhat implausible lines for the most part, improves with a sudden bolt of realism, but then goes hideously slushy in the final stretch with a contrived, manipulative denouement. Apparently it is based on real events that happened in Sweden in the mid-1980s, but the final product still stinks of script doctoring fashioned in order to shape the story into the sort of sanded-down pap that appeals to fans of obvious social-comment cinema.
Protagonist and de facto white saviour Étienne Carboni (Kad Merad) is a curmudgeonly actor, usually of the comic variety, who takes a job teaching drama to male inmates in a high-security prison. Of course, at first the motley crew of prisoners who show up for class just want to goof off or learn about stand-up comedy. However, Étienne sees promise in them and decides to put on a performance of Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot. Tough-but-fair warden Ariane (Marina Hands) thinks that’s a big ask and that they’ll never learn the lines, but of course they do and the show goes on. As the English language title cheerily announces in advance, it’s a hit! But that takes us only halfway through the running time, so things get a bit more interesting as the prisoners and Étienne take the show on the road to various regional theatres.
