Superwho? / Super-Heros malgre lui is a name of the latest French action comedy directed by Philippe Lacheau who also co-wrote the screenplay with Julien Arruti, Pierre Dudan and Pierre Lacheau.

A struggling actor who seems doomed to lead the life of a loser. When finally gets a lead role as a superhero named Badman, he feels like everything is possible but fate strikes again… Rushing off the set in full costume, Cedric has a car accident, loses his memory, and wakes up convinced he really is a superhero on mission!

The film features Philippe Lacheau, Julien Arruti, Tarek Boudali and Élodie Fontan in lead roles, along with Alice Dufour, Jean-Hugues Anglade, Amr Waked and Chantal Ladesou in supporting roles.

This weekend, in Romania, Prorom and Ro Image will release the comedy Superwho? and we invite you to read an interview with the actor and director Philippe Lacheau.

As a screenwriter, director and actor, what do you specifically enjoy about mixing comedy and adventure?
I’m a fan of adventure comedies like The Goonies, Romancing the Stone, and of course the Indiana Jones saga, which has a lot of humor in it. They really influenced me as a kid. You get drawn in by the riveting action and you have a good laugh, too. In our films, I like the idea that we are drawing in audiences with the promise of comedy but offer them adventure like an unexpected bonus, a nice surprise. It’s primordial to us that people leave the movie feeling satisfied and say, "That was cool. I got my money’s worth."

What comic strips and superhero films did you like best as a kid?
Actually, I didn’t read comics very much when I was a kid. I didn’t really discover them until later. The  first movie superhero I was struck by as a kid was Superman, played by Christopher Reeve. Superman is so fascinating that you want to be like him more than any other character. He is strong, humble, kind and invincible. Which by the way makes it really frustrating to see him get pushed around when he is Clark Kent. You feel like shouting at him: "C’mon, tell them who you really are!" (laughs) When I read Marvel comics, I loved Thor, probably for his badass side, for the Scandinavian mythology and his magic hammer. As for movies, I really liked Guardians of the Galaxy, as well as Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, for the way Christopher Nolan depicted that whole universe.

Did you ever want to do parodies of superheroes when you were still a kid? Did you ever do that in the amateur videos you shot with your parents’ video camera?
Yes. I remember a skit I videotaped with some buddies when I was about ten. We interviewed Superman while he was flying and said, "Oh, Superman, we’re really lucky we found you!", and he replied, "You sure are, because the sky is big!".

After adapting Nicky Larson, were you ever tempted to try to make a “real” superhero movie, about a character with superhuman powers living in the real world?
Of course that’s tempting. Just like we sometimes had the urge to make our Nicky Larson adaptation a pure action film, even though our goal was to keep it a comedy. To be honest, I’m not sure I would know how to conceptualize and film a real superhero movie, even if I think I would definitely have things I’d want to show. The problem is, it’s really hard to do that these days, because you have to compete with American productions with budgets near 250 million dollars.

So you set out to do a comedy from the very start?
Yes, but the real starting point for the screenplay was the idea of an actor who is shooting a film and loses his memory. The superhero theme came later. I’d been wanting to do a parody of the Jason Bourne saga for a long time, based on the concept of an actor shooting a spy movie who has an accident while driving a stunt car. Disoriented and in shock, he doesn’t know who he is anymore. When he opens up the trunk and finds traces of blood, gadgets, fake passports and guns, he thinks he is a real secret agent. But the dark side and hitman side of a spy thriller ended up being too heavy for us, so we ended up turning towards the more positive vibe of the world of superheroes. We decided to parody Batman, to stay within a certain logic, since Bruce Wayne has no superpowers and has to rely on gadgets and mastering fighting techniques. That’s when it got to be more fun for us and synched up with what we like most about creating new films: living out our childhood fantasies.

The regulars of your troupe - Élodie Fontan, Tarek Boudali, & Julien Arruti - are all in the film. Does each one talk to you about new kinds of characters they’d like to play before you start writing a project?
We don’t necessarily talk about it beforehand, but since we’ve already shot several films together, we try to mix it up and play different characters each time, so that the audience doesn’t get bored. Sometimes the roles can be fairly similar, if it works in the story. In Superwho?, for example, Élodie plays a warrior, an action-taker, which is new for her. But the number one priority in casting these parts is to make it funny.

Isn’t entertaining audiences and making them forget their troubles, sometimes serious ones, a real superpower?
Absolutely. As a matter of fact, when people ask me who my favorite superhero is, I often answer Kylian Mbappé! (a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain and the France national team).  He inspires millions of people and fills them with extraordinary sensations. That’s also what counts the most to me and motivates me. Nothing makes me happier than when people thank me for that reason. It makes me feel great. At the risk of repeating myself, I got into this profession because I saw my parents laughing at the films of Francis Weber, when they were broadcast on TV.

What other superpower would you like to possess?
What I’d like more than anything else is to have the power to treat sickness and heal people. For my personal pleasure, I’d like to fly. That’s since I discovered the experience of parachuting while shooting Babysitting 2. Even if the sensations of flying are short-lived, they are extraordinarily intense.

Exploring the world of superheroes opened up new filmmaking possibilities for you.
Since it’s a parody, we can use what’s already been done and have fun twisting around the cinematography and directing style of those references to make them funny. Since the main character is an ordinary guy who thinks he’s a superhero, that makes the situations all the more ridiculous.

Did you include allusions to recent superhero films in the credit sequence to tell people who are superhero movie fans, “I’m a real fan of those films, too»?
Yes. It’s the same operating principle we used for Nicky Larson: the story and the main gags were made to entertain people who don’t know the 1980’s cartoon, but there was a second level of the story just for the fans, with very pointed allusions and inside jokes.
You can laugh watching Superwho? even if you don’t know anything at all about that whole world. But fans of Marvel and DC comics will recognize hidden gags almost everywhere, in the subtitles, the background scenery, the names and signs, etc.. The movie is filled with references, and when it comes out, we’ll see how fans react and find out which gags they’ve spotted and which ones they’ve missed!

What were the main artistic and technical challenges you had to overcome to make Superwho? into a film?
I worried about Badman’s costume, because the shoot was planned for summer and I was afraid of suffocating and being uncomfortable in it. That kind of costume is thick and takes a long time to get into, because as I had learned in preproduction, all American actors who play superheroes wear spandex jumpsuits with fake foam muscles underneath their suits. It’s crucial, because those elastic suits are very tight and compress your flesh and the volume of your real muscles. Luckily, the costume designers took very good care of me and slipped frozen shammy cloths beneath my suit to cool me down. That was really wonderful, because wearing a superhero costume all day long is a challenge. I also discovered the limitations of that kind of suit, because when you’re wearing fake muscles, a hood and a mask, it’s impossible to fight like you normally would: you can’t lift your arms up all the way or move your head up and down, and a lot of other kinds of movements become difficult.

Last question: How would you like superhero fans to react when they see your comedy?
Taking on the world of superheroes was new and exciting for us. Judging from the reactions of those who’ve seen it so far, they like the comedy and the way the action builds, and I think the last third of the movie works quite well.
There’s an effect similar to the movie Kick-Ass, in the way Cedric’s character ends up becoming a hero in real life, by fulfilling his dream. I hope comic book fans will laugh as much as we do when they discover this young man who thinks he’s a superhero and see how we’ve brought his misadventures to life.

Superwho? / Super-Heros malgre lui premieres on February 25 in cinemas across Romania, distributed by Prorom and Ro Image.

Struggling actor Cedric seems doomed to lead the life of a loser. He's broke and his girlfriend has dumped him. Even his own father, sister and best buddies have lost faith in his ability to do anything worthwhile. Then finally, he gets a lead role: the superhero “Badman“. A chance to pull himself out of an endless downward spiral and gain his father's respect. But fate strikes again!

Rushing off the set in full costume, Cedric has a car accident, loses his memory, and wakes up convinced he really is a superhero on mission! Confronted with real-life adventure and danger, his true nature is put to the test.

Does he have what it takes to tackle the forces of evil, defend the weakest among us and beat the bad guys? But you can't just decide to be a hero, let alone a superhero... especially someone like Cedric!

Directed by Philippe Lacheau, Superwho? stars Philippe Lacheau, Julien Arruti, Tarek Boudali, Élodie Fontan, Alice Dufour and Chantal Ladesou.

“In Superwho?, there’s an effect similar to the movie Kick-Ass, in the way Cedric’s character ends up becoming a hero in real life, by fulfilling his dream. I hope comic book fans will laugh as much as we do when they discover this young man who thinks he’s a superhero and see how we’ve brought his misadventures to life.” sais director and actor Philippe Lacheau.

Superwho? premieres in Romanian cinemas on February 25, distributed by Prorom and Ro Image.

Foto ©Julien Panie.

In this new adventure, the Granny Aurore did not lose her youth, but she lost, instead... her memory!

She only remembers a certain Gege, and her grandchildren are convinced that if they find him, their grandmother will return to the way he was before - a joyful person, although a difficult one to control…

Chantal Ladesou also has a message for Romanian audience, a message you can see in the trailer above.

When Granny Meets Grandpa is distributed by Prorom and Ro Image and can be seen in Romanian cinemas starting August 20.

In Who’s that Granny, the team behind the success We are Family is back for a new comic adventure!

After two years of living together as a happy family in their own apartment, the patchwork bunch of seven half-sisters and half-brothers are forced to split up and move out.

They reluctantly go their separate ways for summer vacation. But when little Gulliver gets sent alone to his eccentric Grandma Aurore, known for her penchant to party and zero parenting skills, the kids take matters into their own hands: they all show up at her house for the summer!

Life with Granny Aurore is anything but ordinary. She doesn’t cook, she goes out clubbing every night and never gets up before 2:00 pm. Looks like they’ve got to teach Aurore how to be a real grandmother. It’s a tough mission to take on, because Granny Aurore is a real tornado of energy and extravagance. But honestly, a grandma who can also be your best friend, doesn’t that sound like a dream?

In We are Family, the children were the ones who called all the shots. Did you expect the sequel to hand over that role to their "granny", meaning you?  
Chantal Ladesou:  I was totally surprised. Gaby (the director, Gabriel Julien-Laferrière) hinted to me that my role would be bigger this time, but not to the point of becoming the film's main character and having the honor of being in the title! When he had me read his new script, of course I was wildly happy about it! Not because "Granny" had snatched the star role from the kids, but because I got to play her again, and this time with the opportunity of fully exploring her imagination and complexity. And I also have to admit, it was the first time anyone offered me the lead role in a film. After about thirty films playing supporting roles, my little acting ego got a great boost!

Did the responsibility of taking on the title role of a movie frighten you?
If I had parachuted from out of nowhere, into totally foreign territory, I probably would have really flipped out. But in this case, since I already knew the crew and my character, everything was smooth and easy. I took being promoted to this "granny" as a stroke of luck. I don't get to have that much fun with a character in a movie very often.   

Why did you say yes to being in the first film of this adventure?  
I loved the story of this separated and remixed family. At first sight, everyone blended together in a pretty random way, as emotional impulses surfaced. The screenplay was well-structured, and at the same time funny, looney, empathetic and warm, just like a lot of "Benetton" families I know! What I also liked about it is the way it turned the world upside down:  faced with the adolescent immaturity of their parents, the children were the ones who took control and decided to live together in the same apartment. In the middle of that joyful bazaar, my eccentric granny character delighted me. The part wasn't very big, but I liked its craziness and freedom. Acting-wise, it was as great as it promised to be.  

Besides your role, what made you so thrilled about the sequel?
First, the script. Even if it doesn't have the same structure as the first film - which is actually a good thing! - I also thought it was well-constructed. At first, with all those little scenes about these blended families going to various places on vacation with their children, it seems scattered, like a patchwork, multicolored and cool. And then it gets tighter, brings together its little group and closes up like an umbrella. That "centrifugal" construction seemed to be smart as well as charming. Besides that, I was happy to get back together with that "family" of actors, adults and children alike. The adults because in addition to being "aces" on set, they are all exquisite and funny human beings. The kids because each one is endearing in their own way.

They say that acting with children can turn into a nightmare.  
It's true that it can be a hellish exercise:  children get tired fast, their powers of concentration can be short-lived, they don't always respect the "blocking" and acting can bore them quite quickly. It's very hard to get a kid motivated again when he's lagging or doesn't want to do another take.  

So it was pretty logical that when I imagined myself faced with seven kids of all different ages, no matter how much I wanted to do it, I was a little uneasy about shooting We are Family. My fears soon disappeared. All seven behaved like real pros. Gaby had done a good job getting them ready. He'd taken them all out to the countryside. Not to rehearse, just so they could get to know each other and become friends. Between the water fights, pillow fights and all the rest of the tomfoolery, night and day, it made for a pretty raucous weekend. But the seven of them had bonded. On set, coached and managed by Karin Catala, a woman who is gentle, yet energetic and motherly, not only were they extremely disciplined, they also really worked together and were very respectful of everyone. Some of them even came and asked us for bits of advice, which they followed so carefully it was touching. After shooting the first film, which had gone smoothly for the whole team, the little troop kept in touch, so getting back together for Who's That Granny?! was a real joy. The only difference was that the kids had grown up and Gulliver (Sadio Diallo) and I had been promoted!

Do you still identify with the granny you left behind two years ago?
Yes, her personality hasn't changed a bit. She is just as extravagant and independent as ever. But now that she's front and center, she progresses in plain view. Beneath her eccentricity and lifestyle, which seems so rebellious, you discover an amazingly powerful woman. Besides succeeding in bringing everyone together, she has her own special way of taking the children under her wing, helping them to break out of their cocoons and overcome their fears, which fuels that really symbolic sequence I love so much, jumping into the water from the top of the cliff. In the second film, it's not the granny who's changed, it's the children who have grown up and become even more reasonable, as well as the parents, who have become more mature as they have aged and now take their educational role more seriously.

What do you, Chantal Ladesou, have in common with this "granny"?  
A lot of things:  exuberance, joy, sarcasm, a touch of madness, the absolute necessity of feeling free, and also being sensitive and affectionate to the point of not being able to express it sometimes. The only thing we don't have in common is her promiscuity. Not only am I very prude in that respect, but I've been married for 47 years to a very jealous man who wouldn't tolerate me even lifting a finger! And that's mutual, actually! (laughs) But to get back to my granny, I'm probably a little more traditional in my daily life than she is. I dress more conservatively and my behavior is less eccentric. I reserve my extravagance for the stage, which is the only place I allow myself to do nearly anything.

Are you also the kind of actress who sticks to the script?   
In the theater, especially in my "solo shows", I like to indulge in little verbal digressions. But in films, even if I let myself go sometimes, I generally stay on track with the script, especially if the dialogue is good. For this film, as well as the previous one, I was lucky:  Gaby had tailored my dialogue for me. I had some fabulous lines, like "Don't call me granny, it gives me wrinkles!" When you have lines like that to deliver, you don't change a single comma. The comic impact they have is equivalent to a rocket ship!

For you, what's the difference between acting for theater and film?
In theater, there is immediacy. You can't go back, so too bad if you screw up! But you can pace around freely - for example, leave the stage and join the audience. It's a lot of adrenaline, but it's also a source of stimulation that I have a hard time doing without for very long. Movies give you a different feeling. Lighting, timing, blocking - everything has to be spot-on. You project your voice less, the acting is more internal, you look for precision. I like the discipline, it makes me focus. The only thing that annoys me is when we have to redo takes. I feel like I'm losing simplicity and spontaneity.

Who do you think Who's That Granny?! was made for?  
For everyone. It's a bright, energetic family comedy that gives some good advice for life and brings along lots of wonderful values, such as mutual respect and accepting differences. My husband really liked it, and so did my daughter, which proves that it's intergenerational. Of course, they're not in the least bit biased!

Are you, Chantal Ladesou, a granny in real life?  
Yes, but my grandchildren aren't as old as my character's grandkids are. My grandson is three and my granddaughter is only one. It's too bad, I'll have to wait a while before showing them the movie!

Nicky Larson et le Parfum de Cupidon (Nicky Larson and Cupid's Perfume) is a name of the latest French action comedy directed by Philippe Lacheau who also co-wrote the screenplay with Julien Arruti and Pierre Lacheau.

It is an adaptation of the Japanese manga and anime series City Hunter (known as Nicky Larson in France) by Tsukasa Hojo.

The film features Philippe Lacheau, Élodie Fontan, Tarek Boudali and Julien Arruti in lead roles, along with Didier Bourdon, Kamel Guenfoud, Sophie Mousel, Hélène Lamberti and Pamela Anderson in supporting roles.

Nicky Larson is the best bodyguard, an outstanding private investigator. He is called for a high-risk mission: to recover the Perfume of Cupid, a perfume that would make irresistible the one who uses it.

This weekend, in Romania, Prorom and Ro Image will release the comedy Nicky Larson et le Parfum de Cupidon and we invite you to read an interview with the actor and director Philippe Lacheau.

How did you come up with the idea of adapting Nicky Larson for the cinema?
I belong to the club generation Club Dorothée and Nicky Larson, who landed on French television in the 90s, was one of my favorite animated series because it was a real comedy. There was also action, police investigations, love stories, but it was especially funny. Nicky, beyond making me laugh, is the best in everything he undertakes: it's both a detective, a bodyguard, a lovelace... the James Bond of comedy in short. Unconsciously, it was therefore a kid's dream to embody the hero of my childhood in the cinema.

Have you acquired the rights easily?
Not at all! It was a very long process. We got some help from Stephane Huard, CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment France, who through their American and Japanese studio affiliates has allowed us to meet manga creator Tsukasa Hojo. Prior to granting our rights, the Japanese author asked for a right to read the script. After eighteen months of writing, I went to meet him, with my manuscript under my arm, full of fears. After 48 hours, the verdict came: he liked it! I was very happy because he found that the script was loyal to his manga creations, and he made the most beautiful compliment I could ever get from him -- that he would have himself invented this original story.

How was the writing process?
In order to perfectly absorb the universe of Nicky Larson, Julien Arruti, my brother, Pierre Lacheau, Pierre Dudan and myself (the same team from Babysitting) we analyzed 144 episodes of the animated series that were broadcast in France and reread 37 numbers of manga. But I also saw the various adaptations that have been made abroad, including a Chinese movie with Jackie Chan. It was important to see everything to refresh our memories, we had to recover the tone to write. The most important thing was to keep the universe and the characters.
So I found the idea of a quest around Cupid's perfume, a perfume that has the power to make you irresistible. But the real challenge was to attract all the new generation that follows us from Babysitting, but who does not know Nicky Larson. This required a lot of rewriting.

Why is this movie a very personal one?
He sends me back to my childhood. Maybe that's why this is the movie that I'm the most proud of, because everything that comes to this moment of my life is sacred. I was fortunate enough to enjoy the moments when Dorothee (the one who made the Club Dorothee show in France in the '90s) was on our movie set, and I watched her with a child's eyes, reminding me of the show we enjoyed in our youth. It was as if I had met a friend I had not seen for many years. Moreover, it is personal because it brings together my friends, my parents, who appear in the movie, and the names of the characters are sometimes borrowed from relatives.

How did you prepare to become Nicky Larson?
I was so motivated that I exercise for eight months with diets and training, and  I put 8 kg of muscle. In parallel, I worked diligently for choreography of the action scenes, I learned how to shoot with a Magnum gun, machine guns and other heavy weapons, then I dyed my hair. I remember the day the costume handed me Nicky's outfit: seeing me in his blue coat, his red shirt and his black pants made me feel very excited.

Was it from the beginning the idea to work with the same team again?
This is a question I cannot answer. It was an incredible opportunity to work with my friends and, as long as the public follows us, we will continue. This is an incredible luxury and it's great to see that from one movie to another some actors such as Didier Bourdon, Chantal Ladesou and Gérard Jugnot follow us and the “band” grows.

Newcomers immediately joined Nicky Larson's world?
It was interesting because, unlike some "special guests" like Audrey Lamy, Raphaël Personnaz or Jarry, who knew the animated series, the others had not heard of him. But they immediately found him funny, and they followed me with the same enthusiasm. It is fortunate that all these actors have joined us for one or two days because the scenes in which they appear have a size much higher than the scenario indicated. For them it may not have been a lot, but to me it was a lot.

Did you direct your actors as in your other movies?
With my friends I did not change my way of doing things. But I was very afraid, for example, to give directorial directions to Pamela Anderson! When we created the character, we thought it would be great to have her in the movie, because like Nicky Larson, it was a representative image of the 1990s. It was a real surprise that he accepted! And suddenly I woke up under pressure: I speak English very badly, and I did not know how to direct an American star on a shooting set. Would she do all I ask? Would she have extravagant demands? Does he ask for anything in return? Soon I got answers to my questions because the meeting was great! He did not refuse anything, because he was amused to play with his glamorous image.

Where did you shoot?
A little in the South, a little in the Paris region. The original manga is happening in Tokyo, but the filming would have been too expensive and it would have been strange, because the characters speak all French. So we decided to move it to us, but without marking the place. Like Gotham City in Batman, Nicky lives in a city that does not exist, and cannot be located. We filmed in Paris in La Defense, Beaugrenelle, but we added 3D buildings, and we removed the Eiffel Tower from some pictures... The only place mentioned is Monaco.

What were your sources of inspiration?
In the pure comedy, I have a true French culture, because my models have always been Francis Veber - my absolute master - Alain Chabat, Les Nuls, Les Inconnus and Le Splendid.
Among the French comedies of recent years, the series of Taxi movies were probably the most successful. But let's not forget Belmondo, including Le Magnifique, by Philippe de Broca. But this time I have to confess that I was more inspired by the American comedies, because they are very bold. The first time that I saw There’s Something About Mary, by the Farrelly Brothers, was a real shock. And I grew up with American Pie, these genres of movies that pushed the limits! This is an example for me.

The budget was important. Did you have any extra pressure?
When we pictured such a movie, we were scared at first. But to be credible, it was necessary to have money. I did not have the means for a Mission: Impossible kind of movie, but when the idea is to make a James Bond with accent on comedy, the bar is up. That's why we wanted the budget to be appropriate. So we used the best professionals, technicians who worked with Luc Besson and who did a great job in scenes that needed explosions, chasings and very realistic fights.

In the end, the movie is like you want it to be?
I am very happy, yes, because my purpose was to make the most funny movie and to mix it with action and feelings. And, thanks to my great editor, I have the feeling that I have succeeded.

Interview by Clara Géliot.