The Clink of Ice (Le bruit de glaçons) is a delicious tale of a broken man forced to share his domicile with his own cancer. Set in the French countryside, all the action takes place in a labyrinthine house and the surrounding grounds. The setting lends itself well to the stage-play like deliveries and Marx Brothers’ physicality amongst the actors. Man is chased by cancer is chased by housemaid is chased by man, and back around the other way. The title refers to the man’s constant companion – an ice bucket holding a bottle of wine. The man is a sad sack, played by favorite French spy Jean Dujardin, a writer with nothing to write, an estranged father, and an ex-husband. When the embodiment of his consumption comes calling – literally ringing his doorbell – he is set in a motion of action and discovery, joined by his love struck maid and her own meddlesome cancer. Delightfully dark, and yet pleasantly light.
The French farce was followed up by the American Terri. Another coming of age story of an outcast at an Anytown, USA high school, this one starred Jacob Wysocki as an overweight orphan living with a near-senile uncle (Creed Bratton), and John C. Reilly as his vice principal and mentor. It was a bit slow and a lot quiet, but it had enough stuff going on to keep one’s interest. The main performances were held up well by Olivia Crocicchia (Tommy’s younger daughter on “Rescue Me”) and Bridger Zadina as fellow outcasts. It was nothing earth shattering, but it was an entertaining film. Terri opens in the U.S. July 1, but you can probably wait for the DVD.