1964's LIFE UPSIDE DOWN [La Vie à L'Evers] and 1967's THE KILLING GAME [Jeu de Massacre] established director Alain Jessua as one of France's most imaginative filmmakers. Like those early films, his ambitious PARADISE FOR ALL builds upon a provocative premise -- a scientific cure for sadness, anxiety and self-loathing, but with unintended consequences -- which is then pulled into increasingly disturbing directions, accompanied by Jessua's stylish visuals and sharp satirical sensibilities. Unfortunately, the film's distribution was severely hampered by the death of its star, Patrick Dewaere (GOING PLACES, BEAU PERE), at the age of 35 -- only a couple months before PARADISE FOR ALL's scheduled premiere -- from a self-inflicted gunshot head wound. The fact that his character tries to commit suicide in the opening reel obviously hit a little too close to home... After Alain Durieux (Dewaere) unsuccessfully tries to kill himself by leaping off the insurance company building where he works, he ends up in a mental hospital, where Dr. Pierre Valois (singer-songwriter Jacques Dutronc) promises to eliminate his depression using an experimental therapy called "flashing," which targets the brain's hypothalamus with microwaves. As promised, guinea pig Alain is soon miraculously cured, with every aspect of his life now making his happy, which quickly creeps out wife Jeanne (Fanny Cottençon) and friend/colleague Marc (Philippe Léotard). Like Mike Judge's OFFICE SPACE, our lead's unwaveringly calm demeanor also leads to unexpected success at work and home -- from dealing with annoyed clients to finally gaining respect from his superficial mother-in-law (Stéphane Audran). Alain soon encounters other "flashed" individuals and becomes the media's "pioneer of electronic happiness." Meanwhile, Valois begins to recognize the cult-like monstrosity he has created, as more and more people clamor for this treatment and "flashed" individuals begin to force loved ones to undergo the process "for their own good." Apparently inspired by Jessua's experiences in Los Angeles (where he unsuccessfully tried to secure financing for a science-fiction project entitled BLUE PLANET) and emerging at a time when the public flocked to inane self-help books and seminars that promised inner fulfillment, this allegory about society's increasing lack of empathy is laced with chilling observations. Marc wants to commit suicide and nonplussed Alain matter-of-factly advises him on the most practical ways to accomplish it; or how "flashed" individuals are incapable of appreciating art, since everything makes them equally happy. Dewaere is splendid in this unnerving role, keeping his smiling composure no matter what -- disasters, death, loss, it's all "splendid"! -- with Jeanne Goupil (DON'T DELIVER US FROM EVIL) co-starring as newly "flashed" Sophie, who becomes Alain's lover. With its colorful costumes, stylish sets and even a trip to a French roller disco, Jessua keeps the film visually amusing, while his unflinchingly dark sense of humor never lets it become too heavyhanded or didactic, even as it sneaks in Big Questions such as, if someone is stripped of compassion and indifferent to outside suffering, is it truly happiness or just a selfish, lobotomized escape from reality?

© 2024 by Steven Puchalski.