La femme en homme: A weird, dusty time capsule

Is it worth the watch?

Look, if you have a soft spot for the silent era, La femme en homme is a fun little curiosity. It is not going to change your life, but it has a certain charm that the modern stuff just can't replicate.

If you are a completionist for French cinema, you’ll dig it. If you need high-definition clarity or a plot that makes sense every single second, you will probably be reaching for your phone to check emails ten minutes in. 🙄

The vibe

The whole thing feels like a stage play that decided to wander outside for a bit of fresh air. Everything is a little bit exaggerated, which is to be expected, but some of the acting choices here are just baffling.

I noticed that the way they transition between scenes feels like the editor just gave up. One moment you are in a parlor, the next you are in a garden, and the logic connecting the two is basically invisible.

Observations

• The costumes are wild. Everyone looks like they’re having a great time, even when the scene is supposed to be a high-stakes moment of confusion.
• The facial expressions are pushed so far they almost become abstract art.
• There is a moment near the middle where a door slams and I swear the whole set shook.

It reminded me a bit of the frantic energy in Any Old Port, though this one lacks the specific brand of physical comedy that makes that short work so well. It is a bit more polite, a bit more French.

Honestly, the pacing is all over the place. Sometimes it drags, then suddenly it’s sprinting toward an ending that feels like it was tacked on just to stop the projector. It’s not perfect. It’s barely even polished. But that’s why I watched it all the way through.

I’ve seen weirder things in Eerie Tales, but this holds its own as a strange, forgotten piece of the puzzle. Don't go in expecting a masterpiece. Just take it for what it is: a grainy, slightly imperfect snapshot of a different world.