Watch Le Diner de cons

Le Diner de cons is a French comedy film that was released in the year 1998. The movie is directed by Francis Veber and stars Thierry Lhermitte, Jacques Villeret, and Francis Huster in the lead roles. The story revolves around a group of friends who indulge in a rather peculiar hobby. Every week, they organize a dinner party in which each one of them invites a person whom they consider to be a fool. The aim of the game is to have fun at the expense of the invited person by mocking their idiocy and making fun of them. The person who brings the most entertaining fool is declared the winner.

The protagonist of the movie is Pierre Brochant (Thierry Lhermitte), a wealthy Parisian publisher who is on the hunt for a perfect ‘idiot’ to bring to the dinner party. He stumbles upon a tax auditor named Francois Pignon (Jacques Villeret) who fits the bill perfectly. Pignon is an oddball who builds monuments made out of matchsticks and engages in other bizarre hobbies.

Pierre thinks that he has hit the jackpot with Pignon and is eagerly awaiting the dinner party to have some fun at his expense. However, things take an unexpected turn when Pierre injures his back and is unable to attend the dinner party. To make matters worse, Pignon shows up at Pierre’s house on the night of the party, unaware that Pierre is not there.

Pignon turns out to be more than just an idiot, and his strange behavior and antics get progressively out of hand as the night wears on. What ensues is a series of hilarious events as Pignon makes a mess of Pierre's household and the unsuspecting guests of the dinner party begin to realise that they are the ones being played for fools.

The performances of the lead actors are top-notch and the supporting cast complements them brilliantly. Thierry Lhermitte’s portrayal of the smug and arrogant Pierre is excellent, and the contrast with Jacques Villeret’s portrayal of the innocent and well-meaning Pignon is perfect. Francis Huster plays one of Pierre’s friends who realizes that the joke is not as funny as they thought.

The screenplay is clever, witty and full of laugh-out-loud moments. The movie cleverly avoids crossing into mean-spiritedness, and instead provides a light-hearted satire on the differences between the wealthy and those outside of their privileged class. The film’s pacing is excellent, with the plot progressing steadily, constantly ramping up the comedic situations.

The visuals and the settings add to the entire atmosphere of the movie. The classy architecture of Pierre’s apartment and the upscale decor go against the more humble and eccentric expressions of Pignon's matchstick constructions. The contrast in the visual elements further highlights how real the differences between the two main characters are.

The soundtrack of the movie is also noteworthy. The music provides a complement to the visuals, and appropriate background music accompanies every scene. The cohesive sound mixes and the use of various instrumentals and melodies help heighten the mood of the film and perfectly establishes the tone of the work.

In conclusion, Le Diner de Cons is an enjoyable and amusing film with brilliant acting, an intelligent screenplay, and sophisticated jokes. The film's comedic portrayal of the wealthy versus the poor is a satire of reality and serves to highlight the lack of awareness and empathy the elite show toward average people. The film provides a perfect entertainer with a seemingly simple plotline and sufficient substance to produce a witty and highly laughable comedic sensation.

Le Diner de cons is a 1998 comedy with a runtime of 1 hour and 27 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 7.6 and a MetaScore of 73.