Simon plays Boudu, a derelict either devoid of calculation or purely subversive to the core, who attempts suicide when his dog runs off; Boudu is rescued by well-meaning bookseller Lestingois (Charles Granval, also delightful), who takes him in to his comfortable home, much to the chagrin of his wife (Marcelle Hainia) and maid/mistress (Sévérine Lerczinska). Boudu proceeds to wreak havoc on the petty routines and concerns of the family, complaining about every luxury afforded him and making passes at pretty much everyone he encounters, Granval included. For an early talkie, Boudu is remarkably quick on its feet, creatively photographed, and unpredictably humorous, much of this thanks to Simon's genuinely weird performance, which makes the willful eccentricity of a Johnny Depp seem rigorously overmannered by comparison. Indeed, I began to wonder whether Renoir had cast an actual derelict in the role (like Nick Nolte). And while Boudu's message is certainly well-traveled, its delivery is wonderful, like an overtrod Nick Nolte joke spun afresh with the panache of a Bob Newhart.
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