''La Chèvre'' (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

title: ''Knock on Wood'', literal translation: ''The She-goat'') is a 1981 French buddy cop

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending ( black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the o ...

written and directed by

Francis Veber Francis Paul Veber (born 28 July 1937) is a French film director, screenwriter and producer, and playwright. He has written and directed both French and American films. Nine French-language films with which he has been involved, as either writer ...

, starring Pierre Richard and

Gérard Depardieu Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu, CQ (, , ; born 27 December 1948) is a French actor, filmmaker, businessman and vineyard owner since 1989 who is one of the most prolific thespians in film history having completed over 250 films since 1967 al ...

. It is the first of three films featuring Richard and Depardieu as a comic duo. An American remake of this film was made in 1991, starring Martin Short and

Danny Glover Danny Lebern Glover (; born July 22, 1946) is an American actor, film director, and political activist. He is widely known for his lead role as Roger Murtaugh in the '' Lethal Weapon'' film series. He also had leading roles in his films inclu ...

, entitled ''

Pure Luck ''Pure Luck'' is a 1991 American comedy film starring Martin Short and Danny Glover. It is a remake of the popular French comedy film '' La Chèvre'' (1981). Plot The film opens as the klutzy Valerie Highsmith arrives at an airport in Puerto ...

''.

Plot

''La Chèvre'' features Depardieu as the tough-guy private detective Campana, hired to find Marie, the daughter of a rich businessman, who has mysteriously disappeared while vacationing in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

. The case turns out to be complicated – several attempts to find her have already failed. A

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual Perception () is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information in order to represent and understand the pre ...

, Meyer, who works for the businessman, suggests a plan. Marie is known to be extremely unlucky and accident-prone; the psychologist advises sending someone equally accident-prone to find her, on the theory that what happened to her may also happen to him, and thus, following her steps while the detective tags along, the daughter can be found and returned home. Richard's character Perrin is an awkward, accident-prone accountant who works for the businessman, and is chosen to implement the scheme. The adventures of those serious detective and unlucky guy begins...

Cast

* Pierre Richard as François Perrin *

as Campana * Pedro Armendáriz Jr. as The Captain * Corynne Charbit as Marie Bens *

Maritza Olivares Maritza Olivares is a Mexican actress. She appeared in telenovela A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning " ...

* André Valardy as Meyer * as Arbal * Sergio Calderón as Prisoner *

Michel Robin Michel Robin (13 November 1930 – 18 November 2020) was a French film, stage, and television actor. A sociétaire of the Comédie-Française since 1996, he also appeared in 120 films from 1966 to 2018. He won several awards for his acting, ...

as Alexandre Bens * Robert Dalban as The technician

Release history and facts

The movie is infamous in Italy for a Cinema Statuto fire in a cinema in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

in which it was projected, killing 64 people.

Reception

The film received favorable reviews, with praise for Richard and Depardieu's performances, story and humour. The film was nominated for

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

of 1985 by the U.S. National Board of Review of Motion Pictures.

References

La Chevre/Knock On Wood
at Films de France site.

External links

* * * *
Trailer
1981 films 1980s adventure comedy films French comedy road movies 1980s comedy road movies Mexican comedy films 1980s French-language films Films directed by Francis Veber Films scored by Vladimir Cosma French adventure comedy films 1980s buddy comedy films 1981 comedy films Films about accountants 1980s French films 1980s Mexican films {{1980s-France-film-stub