The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacob

Gerard Oury's 1973 French farce, released at long last, is indebted to Billy Wilder's Some Like It Hot (Oury even gives credit to Wilder for his film's last line, as much of a perfect capper here as it was when Joe E. Brown used it on Jack Lemmon). Louis de Funes, one of France's most beloved comic actors, has a field day as Victor, a kind of Gallic Archie Bunker who--don't ask--is forced to go on the lam disguised as a rabbi. Yes, he will learn tolerance and understanding, but getting there is all the fun, and the film boasts classic scenes in which de Funes must greet Jewish villagers eagerly awaiting the good rabbi's arrival…and perform a bar mitzvah ceremony. Thanks to some timeless slapstick sequences (a chase set in a bubble gum factory is worthy of Mack Sennett), The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacob still gets our blessing 30 years later: you should watch and enjoy. Presented in a solid widescreen transfer, this is recommended. (D. Liebenson) [Blu-ray/DVD Review—Sept. 24, 2019—Film Movement, 100 min., in French, English, Hebrew, Yiddish & Arabic w/English subtitles, G, DVD: $29.95, Blu-ray: $39.95—Making its latest appearance on DVD and debut on Blu-ray, 1973’s The Mad Adventures of 'Rabbi' Jacob features a nice transfer with mono audio on the Blu-ray release. Extras include an interview with co-screenwriter Danièle Thompson (14 min.), and a new essay by author Phoebe Maltz Bovy. Bottom line: this wacky minor classic makes a welcome debut on Blu-ray.]