Joann Sfar
2010
130 minutes
Serge Gainsbourg is one of your go-tos for karaoke tunes. Whether it's songs he sang himself or ones he wrote for other people, half your karaoke songs are Gainsbourg favorites. The ones he sang himself are solidly in your vocal range, and the ones he wrote for women to sing are just fun to sing as a man.
Looks-wise he also happens to remind you a bit of your father in his younger years. Same big nose, same big ears. Slightly louche, loved the ladies, but certainly not nearly as drinky.
Gainsbourg's mug is literally a character in this biopic. He is an ugly puppet who follows Gainsbourg around like a devil on his shoulder, telling him to do things that are often a bit dodgy.
You tend not to like biopics, but this one hits all the right notes for you. A mostly-likeable rogue as the subject, plenty of eye candy and ear candy, and the surreal elements like Gainsbourg's puppet doppelgangers following him around to encourage his best and worst instincts. Plus all the satisfying little appearances by characters such as Charles Aznavour and Georges Brassens.
This will be a rewatch for you when your Netflix and chill turns into Netflix and snore and you're left behind on the couch still wired and not ready for bed and trying not to wake someone up.
Time to choose something different: