Happy He Who Like Ulysses (1970) User Reviews (4)

Fernandel says goodbye...

[dbdumonteil · 7/10 · 17 May 2007]

The ending of an extraordinary career which began at the beginning of the talkies ....He worked with the best directors (Christian-Jaque,Julien Duvivier,Marcel Pagnol,Autant-Lara,Becker..) and with the not-so-great but estimable ones (Verneuil,Grangier..) but he always remained himself ,Fernandel.All he had to do was act naturally.

Henri Colpi has made few movies."Une Aussi Longue Absence " was a beautiful film ,some kind of "Un Long Dimanche de Fiançailles" with more elegance,modesty and emotion.Some consider "Codine" filmed in Romania his best.Probably deservedly so.

"Heureux qui comme Ulysse " (the title of which is borrowed from an eponymous Joachim Du Bellay poem from the sixteenth century) tells the story of an old horse,not able to work on a farm anymore .Next stop is the Arles arenas ,in other words ,death.The farmhand (Fernandel) who 's got to take the animal there decides to rebel against his boss's inhuman decision.

People who like Provence will love the magnificent landscapes (Saint-Rémy -de Provence,les Baux ,la Camargue).And there's also a moving song by Georges Brassens which superbly enhances the film.Should appeal to the whole family.

a touching and simple story.

[chouan · 8/10 · 19 May 1999]

An old farmhand wants to save his old horse from being gored in the bull ring. He leaves everything to lead Ulysse, the horse, to the safety and freedom of the Camargue National Park. Beautiful images, excellent acting, with a little bit of comedy thrown in and music by the great Georges Brassens.

Wonderful yet simple

[lady_bug89 · 8/10 · 5 July 2008]

It was by pure accident that I ended up seeing this movie on TV this morning, but it was superb...beautiful scenes, simple story but catchy in the same time: Antonin is given the task to take the horse Ulyse, his long time friend for 25 years to a corrida in a nearby town, where the horse will surely be slaughtered by an angry bull, to the delight of the spectators. He does not have the means to buy the horse back from his employer, but he must find a way to save Ulyse. Fernandel plays the role of the simple working farmer beautifully... Wonderful music by George Brassens, what a soothing and calming voice he has. There are some comical scenes as well, and of course, a stiff and jumpy Jandarme could not be missed in the movie. A great movie to watch on a Sunday summer afternoon with a cooled glass of wine by your side...At the end, you'll be just as happy as Ulyse, the horse :)

Fernandel's last picture

[bob998 · 9/10 · 4 September 2006]

This was Fernandel's last film; he was to die not long after its release. A simple story of a man and his old horse, with a loving portrait of life in Provence, this is a very moving film indeed. Antoine arranges to deliver his horse Ulysse to the picador in Arles, to be used in bullfights. But his heart is not in it; he remembers too many incidents from the past (like Spencer Tracy in The Old Man and the Sea).

In Arles, he takes the horse away after watching another horse getting gored... The grace and subtlety of Fernandel's performance is impressive. Thanks to Télé-Québec for including this in their Fernandel series.