Fifteen years ago Bruno Blanchet left Quebec to move his household — and experience true love — in Thailand. However, each time he returns to Quebec, not a week goes by without being asked to impersonate his “little gentleman neck”, or to call some brother-in-law for him. wish happy birthday by taking the voice of “tite tooth”.
In short, if you thought you were the only ones missing the “good old days”, meeting around The end of the world is at seven o’clock or of Do not adjust your dryerand the completely offbeat humor that made them cult shows, this is obviously not the case.
To offer a gift to the faithful public — and a little to himself — Bruno Blanchet brings his famous characters back to life in Melancholitisa 10-episode web series that will be presented on ICI Tou.tv from April 27.
“I am someone who likes to be on the move, who needs to create new things all the time, indicates Bruno Blanchet, met by videoconference in tandem with the director of the show, Arnaud Bouquet. So I needed a sapre good reason to return to this universe. We wondered if it was possible to resuscitate it today, to reflect the world through these silent, mechanical characters, which cannot be more humorously simple. »
It was Arnaud Bouquet — who was responsible for the production and screenwriting of the Holidays fromMr Bruno, where the actor was on an eventful 80-day journey through Southeast Asia – who had the idea of revisiting this universe. “I arrived in Quebec in the 1990s [il est né en France]. I had two Quebec roommates who convinced me to watch The end of the world… It immediately spoke to me. We had television marginals there who became cults in spite of themselves. It’s something that appeals to me about Bruno, to have the chance to rub shoulders with someone who has developed a universe that touches so many people. With Melancholitis, we do something completely different, while keeping the purity and simplicity of the characters; two elements that have made them timeless, in the vein of Jacques Tati and Charlie Chaplin, so as not to throw too many flowers at Bruno. »
“Your check is in the trunk”, replies the main interested party, in front of this avalanche of compliments.
Make way for tenderness
In this new concept, Bruno Blanchet receives a call from his great friend Guy Jodoin, suffering from melancholitis; great depression linked to nostalgia for the past. Everything was so much better before! Guy has barricaded himself in his house, where he spends his days watching VHS tapes of old comedy sketches of the duo they formed together. To prove to him that the present is also worth living, Bruno begins, with Guy’s nephew, played here by rapper FouKi, a race across Quebec to collect testimonies of love for his friend. Along the way, Bruno will also be overtaken by the ghosts of his past, driven by a great thirst for revenge.
The comedian is well surrounded in this new adventure. Anne-Marie Losique, Guylaine Tremblay, Christian Bégin, Francis Reddy, Marc Labrèche, Georges St-Pierre and many others appear in the credits.
“Bruno is extremely unifying. All the people approached during the cast accepted the invitation, or almost. I think the universe provides them with a great playground. On the set, there was really a team spirit. All ideas were welcome,” says the director.
We are therefore entitled to hilarious raps imagined by FouKi, to a Guy Jodoin, freshly dyed hair and beard, desperately clinging to his youth – “I peed on myself when I saw him arrive on the set”, assures Bruno Blanchet — and a few well-placed improvisations.
The result is certainly hilarious, but also touching, thoughtful and very gentle. “I wanted there to be a lot of tenderness, for it to be a big celebration between friends. The format allowed us to explore gray areas, take risks and leave room for surprises,” emphasizes Bruno Blanchet.
The two friends are used to dealing with the unexpected. During the filming of the VTravels of Monsieur Bruno, they often found themselves unprepared; like this time when an episode around a Dogon chief, in Mali, had to be completely rethought, his death preceding their arrival by a few days. “Even though we had a script this time, we wanted to incorporate that element of danger into it. We wrote touching and dramatic scenes, which I was not sure I would be able to play,” he continues.
Everything was better before?
More than ever, making humor requires intelligence, sensitivity and erudition; qualities that can prove to be brakes as well as engines. What about someone who built a career doing what he wasn’t really allowed to do?
“I find it interesting to put my head on the stake, to see if my humor survives today’s society,” replies Bruno Blanchet. The formidable Anne-Marie Losique, by accepting to caricature herself, allowed us to explore these questions. She was very generous, everyone fell in love with her. »
“We understand, with the character of Anne-Marie, that humor can make people laugh, but that it can also make them cry,” adds Arnaud Bouquet. Does that mean we have to stop? No. But you have to reflect and adapt the way you do it, rework the muscle so as not to fall into the trap of easy and adapt to the new reality. »
“Laughing is essential to understanding and assimilating the world. Like light, it passes through cracks. In Moscow, the shows of stand up are a hit right now, because it’s one of the few places where you can still criticize Putin. In Ukraine, President Zelensky often says he feels like Bill Murray in groundhog day, by dint of repeating the same demands to Western leaders. He understands that it is this language that connects people”, continues Bruno Blanchet.
On our side of the ocean, The melancholy will bring at the very least a little sweetness in these troubled times, reminding us – and perhaps reactivating – moments spent with family around a television appointment. But beware of melancholy! Inheritances are passed on. “If we can make a young person want to create, to push their limits, we can say ‘mission accomplished'”, concludes the actor.