Summary
Marius, a Provençal sheep-shearer, dreams of nothing but becoming a ladies’ hairdresser
and is ready to do anything to fulfil this ambition. Thanks to his good fortune
and innate charm, he manages to open his first hair-dressing salon in Paris and, now known
as Mario, he is soon the most popular coiffeur in the area. Yet, still he dreams
of climbing higher. His wish comes true when a bourgeois young woman, Edmonde, summons
him to her apartment to re-style her hair...
Review
In this re-make of a popular 1932 French film directed by Réné Guissart,
that incomparable "fou de rire" Fernandel regales us with one of his most memorable comic
performances. Here he plays an ambitious hairdresser who is prepared to do anything
to rise to the top of his profession, including getting entangled with man-hungry society
ladies - with hilarious consequences.
In the 1940s and 1950s, director Jean Boyer was responsible for many popular and well-crafted
comic farces, of which Coiffeur pour dames is a fine example. Not only
is the film well scripted (with many well-realised comic situations and some excruciatingly
funny one-liners), but it includes some pleasing performances and makes an entertaining
satire on the ungraceful art of social climbing.
© James Travers 2002
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