Victor comme tout le monde

Should Victor Hugo be regarded as a ‘great genius’ or ‘like everybody’, a talented but flawed human being? This film is the comical yet sensitive dramatisation of an actor (superb Fabrice Luchini) facing the complexities of post-#MeToo culture both on stage and in life.

Since the #MeToo movement began, French cinema has been rocked by numerous sexual abuse scandals. A theme has emerged: exclusive veneration of ‘male genius’ in any art form creates an inherently abusive culture. So, what does that mean for a popular performer like Robert Zucchini – modelled on Fabrice Luchini who portrays him – whose stage act extols the “brilliance” of Victor Hugo? The actor collides not only with a feminist theatre troupe, but with the adult daughter from whose life he has been largely absent. How to square art with politics – and, even more importantly, with real-life relationships?

Former critic and prolific screenwriter Pascal Bonitzer has hit his stride as a director in recent years; Victor comme tout le monde is a crisp, sensitive, funny and moving account of contemporary dilemmas, beautifully scripted by Sophie Fillières (who died in 2023). The film achieves a rare balance: avoiding easy satire, it allows us to see all sides of the situation – including appreciation of Hugo as, indeed, a great writer.

– Adrian Martin