A Monkey In Winter

A good classic French film to curl up on the couch with on a cold winter weekend night: Un Singe En Hiver or A Monkey In Winter. Henri Verneuil directs this 1962 cult film starring Jean Gabin and Jean-Paul Belmondo.

A crusty and grouchy middle aged alcoholic (Gabin) promises to his wife that he'll stop drinking if they survive the Normandy invasion during WWII. They do and he keeps his promise. The only problem is, when he stops drinking, he stops dreaming and slowly begins to rot away in his tiny hotel. 

Along comes a young man (Belmondo) with a few troubles of his own, a penchant for the bottle, and need to hole up in the sleepy coastal town and drown his sorrows away. 

Gabin cracks and goes out on an epic bender with Belmondo. They give the entire town a good show.

The film has fantastic dialogue, brilliant acting, and is in true French flavor. 

Here is a famous scene from the film.

Voial! gros bisous de cinema française et a demain.

Love, Charley