Get Out Your Handkerchiefs Reviews

A more civilized, less offensive version of GOING PLACES, Blier's earlier film, GET OUT YOUR HANDKERCHIEFS again pairs Depardieu and Dewaere, as childlike men who are completely emasculated by the mysterious woman in their lives. Frustrated by his inability to make his wife (Laure) happy, Depardieu asks a complete stranger (Dewaere) to give it a try. All Laure seems to do is knit sweaters with a completely expressionless face. Dewaere is equally impotent, however, and succeeds only in establishing a close friendship with Depardieu. It takes a third "man"--Riton, a 13-year-old genius the threesome meets at the boys' summer camp that Dewaere runs--to fulfill the unhappy woman. Laure, who has been unable to have a child with Depardieu or Dewaere, finally finds someone to love and care for, even though he is only 13. Besides Blier's sharp direction and screenplay, the film is memorable for the performances of Depardieu and Dewaere. These two superb actors seem so in tune with one another that one must judge their performance as a synthesized whole.