• fax: 1-866-743-3439
  • toll-free: 1-877-366-7327

Blog by Don Kennedy

<< back to article list

Welcome to the Sticks

Welcome to the Sticks (Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis) is the biggest box office draw in French history. Who knew that the northern area close to the English Channel is considered the Newfoundland of France? Nowhere does that prejudice manifest itself more than within the southern sphere of influence for Philippe Abraham (Kad Merad). He’s a post office executive itching for a transfer to the Riviera but due to misconduct is banished to the northern outpost of Bergues which his friends and family are convinced is just steps away from the Arctic Circle. His wife Julie (Zoe Felix) cannot even bear the thought of living there so he goes alone, commuting south on weekends with tales of brutish residents and inclement weather. That’s because his wife will not believe the truth which is that the town is quaint, the weather is temperate and he likes the idiosyncratic people. One of them is the lovelorn, motherly smothered Antoine - as charming as Bergues itself and played by Danny Boons who also wrote and directed this funny homage to his actual roots. The lie actually has an unctuous effect on the relationship of Philippe and his wife but when Julie decides to steel herself and join her suffering husband he has to face his new friends and let them know what he’s been saying at home and face the consequences of their reaction. This is in French with subtitles so if you decide you don’t like reading, Will Smith is working on an Americanized version which will undoubtedly have a bigger budget but could not possibly have more heart.

Archives