he creative team behind one of the highest-grossing films in French box-office history comes together once again for this American remake of the 1993 smash-hit comedy Les Visiteurs. The basic premise remains the same: when a wizard's spell goes awry, 12th-century nobleman Count Thibault (Reno) and his malodorous servant, André (Clavier), are magically transported to the future. In this version, however, instead of finding themselves in modern-day France, the two unwitting time travelers arrive at Chicago's Fine Arts Museum, where the room they previously occupied has become an exhibit.
The display's donor is Julia Malfete (Applegate), a descendant of Thibault's and an exact lookalike of his betrothed, Princess Rosaline. Julia mistakes Thibault for her cousin, who was lost at sea and presumed dead. Believing that he is experiencing some kind of mental trauma, she invites him and his companion to stay with her. This does not please her scheming fiancée, Hunter (Matt Ross), who is planning to sell off the vast family estate owned by Julia's missing cousin and share the profits with
his mistress.
For Thibault and André, the modern world is full of wonders both frightening and miraculous. When Julia takes them into her home, they either break or misuse every appliance they encounter. Modern
conveniences such as indoor plumbing and electricity are completely foreign to them. Also new to André are the concepts of freedom and equality, which he learns from the neighbor's free-spirited gardener, Angelique (Tara Reid). Thibault teaches a similar lesson to Julia, uncovering her inner strength and
giving her the courage to stand up to her conniving fiancée.
Her very existence could be in danger, however, if they don't find a way to get Thibault back to his own time so he may continue the Malfete lineage.
The French love Jerry Lewis, too
Most of the elements that made Les Visiteurs a success in France are also present in this remake. Reno and Clavier reprise their original roles with genuine humor and gusto. Director Jean-Marie Gaubert has a light touch that is ideally suited to the comedic tone of the film. The screenplay was adapted by the original writers, Clavier and Jean-Marie Poiré, in collaboration with John Hughes of The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off and Home Alone fame. By all accounts, this film should have worked as an American comedy. So why doesn't it?
One important reason is the uneven pacing, which favors lengthy sight gags and outrageous bits of business over significant plot developments. For instance, a recreation of a scene from the original film where the two main characters discover a toilet gets twice as much screen time as the moment when Julia finds out her fiancée has been cheating on her.
The characters do not seem to follow any kind of internal logic, either. It never occurs to Julia and Hunter that two men in full medieval garb might be out of place at Chicago's most elegant restaurant. At the restaurant, André sits on the floor and behaves like a barbarian, roaming through every room causing havoc, yet no one asks him to leave.
These annoyances are minor on their own, but added together they detract from the overall appeal of the film. This is not to say that it is entirely unenjoyable. The performances are solid throughout, especially the heartfelt moments between Julia and Thibault. Also worth mentioning are the interesting CGI effects, most notably employed in a medieval banquet sequence where Thibault drinks a potion and sees the faces of all the guests morph into various types of vegetables.
