La Merveilleuse Journée: A French Daydream That Hits Hard

Is it worth your time?

If you like old French comedies that feel like they were filmed during a long, lazy lunch break, you will probably dig La Merveilleuse Journée. It’s not exactly deep, and the plot moves with the frantic energy of someone who just drank three espressos too many. If you need tight pacing or a story that makes total sense, stay away. This is for people who enjoy watching characters make bad decisions while wearing nice hats.

The whole thing starts in a pharmacy in the South of France, which is basically the best place for a movie to start. Blaise is just trying to do his job, but his boss's wife—Mrs. Pinède—is far too interested in him. It’s that kind of classic, sweaty French farce where everyone is in love with the wrong person.

The Big Break

Then comes Felloux, the rich guy who just wants to play benefactor for a day. It’s weird, right? He just picks this random pharmacy assistant and says, 'Let’s go lose some money in Juan-les-Pins.' I wish that happened to me, but instead, I just get spam emails about crypto.

The casino scenes are… loud. Not in sound, but in pure, unadulterated desperation. Blaise wins a mountain of cash, and suddenly he’s a different person. He’s not the pharmacy guy anymore. He’s the guy buying jewelry for strangers. The necklace scene? It’s genuinely sweet, in a way that feels almost out of place for how cynical the rest of the movie wants to be.

• The lighting in the casino scenes is weirdly grainy.
• I’m pretty sure one of the extras in the background is just reading a newspaper the entire time.
• The transition from 'rich man' to 'broke guy' happens so fast you’ll get whiplash.

It reminds me a bit of the frantic energy in The Stronger Sex, where the social dynamics are just as messy. It’s not as polished as As You Like It, but honestly, that’s why it works. It feels messy because people are messy.

The ending is a bit of a thud. It doesn’t try to give you a big, grand moral lesson, which I appreciate. Life is just a series of 'merveilleuse' days followed by a lot of 'oops, I spent all my money' days. Blaise goes back to his pharmacy, the wife is still there, and the magic is gone. C'est la vie, I guess. 🍷