After a tumultuous life, a middle-aged headwaiter in a Parisian restaurant dreams of opening a seaside amusement park. When an old flame reappears, he reignites his feelings, but she is involved with another man.
Acting
Yves Montand's weary charm carries every frame like a tray of broken hopes.
Direction
Sautet captures restaurant rhythm so precisely you'll smell the duck confit.
Director
Claude Sautet
Yves Montand
Alex, head waiter
Nicole Garcia
Claire
Jacques Villeret
Gilbert, Alex's friend
Rosy Varte
Gloria, Alex's ex-wife
Dominique Laffin
Coline, Alex's young lover
Marie Dubois
Marie-Pierre
Bernard Fresson
Francis, head chef of the brasserie
Annick Alane
Jeannette
Marianne Comtell
Mrs. Pierreux
Jenny Astruc
Mrs. Paulin
Hubert Deschamps
Armand
Georges Claisse
François
Henri Génès
Sangali
Yves Robert
Simon, dance teacher
Gérald Calderon
Customer of the brewery
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Sautet filmed in the actual Paris restaurant La Coupole, with real waiters as background performers.
The amusement park dream references France's 1980s coastal development boom and working-class fantasies of reinvention.
FR
