Better late than never. The Cinémathèque, although not stingy with tributes, has finally decided to devote a retrospective to the work of Pascal Thomas. Until October 14, a breath of fresh air will flow through the rooms of Bercy. The public will discover high school students from Poitou dreaming of Swedish blondes, bored young ladies on vacation in the countryside, joyful adulterers and big heartbreaks that don't last. Thomas, who never takes himself seriously, launched Bernard Menez, popularized a song by Paolo Conte, brought Agatha Christie adaptations back into fashion.
That's not nothing. Nothing is serious about him. He is a Chardonne-style moralist, a Léautaud-style dilettante. His titles are already a program, Les Zozos, Pleure pas la bouche full. Confidences for confidences is the heartbreaking chronicle of three sisters tossed by life. His new film, Le Voyage en pajamas (released January 17), immerses his eccentric hero in a France that he travels by bike, by boat, and on a scooter. Chance plays a significant role in this tour of ancient conquests where the ghost of Dino Buzzati, a quote from Auguste Renoir and the memory of a province whose scent permeates each image intersect. Humor and emotion. Pascal Thomas remains that little boy who lost his father at 7 years old and was sent to boarding school.