Perfect cast and a good story

People are voting emotionally.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

Arguing is instilled in French culture. The French practice arguing to keep their minds sharp (perhaps something lacking in our culture). Cultural relativism is not apparent in other reviews that criticize and find the the amount of arguing in the film "boring." The film is quite captivating. Classic French cleverness is very present in the script. The characters present a wonderful view into the lives of Parisians and their commitment to great wine, food and conversation. The idea of titles and the strange taboos society has on names is the deeper argument for all the audience to ponder once the film has finished. The actors in the film keep the audience engaged with a handful of stories and perspectives on family life.

A family is preparing to have a dinner party together in a French apartment. It is being hosted by Elisabeth (Valerie Benguigui) and Pierre (Charles Berling), while the first two guests are Vincent (Patrick Bruel), who is Elisabeth's brother, and Claude (Guillaume de Tonquedec), who is a childhood friend. Vincent arrives before his pregnant wife Anna (Judith El Zein) and one of the main discussions is what they will be naming their child. To create havoc Vincent elects to tell them a controversial name. His one small lie unleashes the fury of Pierre first and then numerous other arguments breakout, revealing each of their personalities but also some long buried family secrets and some unexpected conflicts and surprises. There are pleasures to be found in this minor French comedy, it just takes time to reflect on them. Adapted from a play, the film seems as though it lacks cinematic stylisation. The technical elements leave something to be desired because this is directors Alexandre de La Patelliere and Matthieu Delaporte's first feature film from Delaporte's own play. The film is set almost entirely in one area, which isn't new, but the camera is largely static and the actors stand around, waiting for their turn to speak. One of the saving graces for the film though is that the humour shifts between highbrow French culture and then gleefully embraces a silly side too. The film opens with the repeat images of people throughout French history being assassinated through the macabre route. This establishes the rather black rim that borders around the jokes. The film is about figurative character assassinations as people shoot each other down, based on their interests or their insecurities. Pierre and Vincent argue about the political incorrectness of the baby name he is said to have chosen, I guessed prematurely what it was, and then Vincent argues that he took it from a literary text and they fight over the spelling of the name. The dialogue is written with rare, microscopic details and then the humour and jokes broaden as the power plays between the characters shift. Vincent the instigator suddenly becomes the butt of people's jokes, like when they torment him about his facial expressions. Similarly, after being left out of conversations Elisabeth launches at Pierre over their domestic roles. Some of the setups are well-organised, particularly when Vincent is about to reveal that name because it gives a preemptive feel to the chaos that is about to erupt. The weakness of the film is that despite the comedy revealing character and being purposeful, as it should be, there aren't a lot of big laughs. I think this has to do with the film's low energy levels. At just under two hours the film feels very long when this setup has been performed much leaner in the past. The Roman Polanski film Carnage from last year had a very similar premise but it was thirty minutes shorter and felt more satisfying. It was funnier and had more memorable episodes that I can still remember today. Nonetheless, this is a comedy that is deceptively small, and more layered and verbally articulate than a lot of mainstream comedies.

This film is about a dinner party that turns very wrong, after a man announcing that he will name his unborn son Adolphe."The Name" is a very dialog heavy film. It comprises of 90 minutes of non stop arguments, people throwing tempers, and being nasty to each other. The spotlight keeps changing from one character to the next, and all five characters get their share of blame and ridicule. This film reminds me so much of the Hollywood film "Carnage", which I did not enjoy. For both films, I just do not understand why any of the characters keep the argument going by being in the room, when they could easily have walked out. The two films both show an extended argument for argument's sake. All I see is endless negativity, and no artistic credit. I find "The Name" a huge bore.

Mix of Un Air de Famille by Klapisch and Carnage by Polanski, Le Prénom is clearly divided in two parts: the first is pure comedy oriented, whereas the second is more drama focused.The problem is that those two parts aren't homogeneous: the beginning is very good, dynamic, the dialogues fly, the humour is really present and the viewer is quickly sucked in. Unfortunately, the more the film progresses, the more the comical aspect is left aside, and the more the movie loses interest. The script goes thought bland and uninteresting passages, and we are served a dramatic aspect that isn't the most exciting one, which is disappointing in comparison to the thundering start.A fifteen minute cut, mostly from the second part, could have also improved the overall rhythm of the movie.Special mention to the cast who was very good and showed a great chemistry.