I've read some of the comments before and it surprises me that people really try comparing this movie to others and expecting from it a classic approach to comedy or sci-fi or even drama. I have the feeling that you cannot judge this movie using the same common patterns because it simply is different. I don't think that producers really wanted this movie to be rushed to cinema or trying to manage making it within a tight budget. Well, it is a small budget movie, maybe, but it didn't require too much funds. You don't need a huge budget to do something really excellent. This movie is a completely new approach to any of the above mentioned genres. And, as lnt-k said just before me, it is above all a wonderful ode to friendship. That's all that matters here. And the actors are magnificent. Louis de Funes, may God rest him in peace, is perfect in this movie, even if the critics were not generous with the movie. I don't need critics to really enjoy a performance like this. Each time I watch it again, I love it more and more. 10 out of 10 from me.

When I first saw this movie, about 10 years ago, I really liked it. I remember making cabbage soup and drinking an entire bottle of wine the same night! But today, my opinion of the film differs. Not that it's a complete waste of time, but it seems it was rushed into production. Great actors (De Funès, Carmet and Villeret), but not used to their full potential. And some scenes are just plain stupid, like the farting contest. The difficulty for peasants to adjust to today's lifestyle could have been more well explored, even in a comedy of this sort. One bright note: La Denrée, played by Villeret. His language is hilarious!Out of 100, I gave it 66. That's good for *½ out of ****. Ten years ago, I gave it 78. Seen at home, in Toronto, on November 28th, 2004.

This was Mr de Funès on one of his last movies. Even if the health was not all there, he still had the touch and wacky ways of making us laugh. It had a moral, not to make fun at you elders, even if they are living in the past manners. You need to be open minded and you must be a fan of Mr de Funès to really appriciate his style of humour.

This film is an adaptation from René Fallet's novel: "la soupe aux choux" that is a good novel. Two farmers who are fond of red wine and of cabbage soup are visited by an extra-terrestrial who apppreciate the soup. In exchange of soup, he comes back to life one of the farmers's wife who will quickly leave her elderly husband due to his age. Because they are aware that modern world doesn't fit them, the two farmers are leaving on another planet with their houses and their soup. When you watch this film, there is one thing that is very obvious: it was especially made for Louis De Funès (besides, he wrote the screenplay of the film with the director Jean Girault) and consequently the other actors have got only a decorative role; if you compare Jean Carmet and Jacques Villeret to De Funès, the two actors are very pale. Moreover, this film is often vulgar (De Funès and Carmet who make a stupid competition of farts after drinking a lot), and dumb too; the music that is made of synthesizers is completely incompatible with the story and sounds like Abba music. This vulgarity can even fade to racism to farmers. All around the farmers' houses, an enormous town was built and its inhabitants are laughing at them. The only positive points that you can put forward are Jacques Villeret who is very funny when he's shouting "glou glou glou" and even if De Funès hams it up, it's always nice to see him getting angry. At last if Fallet had seen the film, he would have feel betrayed and if this film is too crude for you, you can always read the novel.