Bye Bye Morons
2020 comedy film

Bye Bye Morons
Film poster
FrenchAdieu les cons
Directed byAlbert Dupontel
Screenplay byAlbert Dupontel
Produced byCatherine Bozorgan
Starring
CinematographyAlexis Kavyrchine
Edited byChristophe Pinel
Music byChristophe Julien
Production
companies
Release date
  • October 21, 2020 (2020-10-21) (France[1])
Running time
87 minutes
CountryFrance
LanguageFrench
Box office$17 million[2]

Bye Bye Morons (French: Adieu les cons) is a 2020 French comedy drama film written and directed by Albert Dupontel. The film stars Virginie Efira, Albert Dupontel and Nicolas Marié.[3][4]

The film received twelve nominations at the 46th César Awards,[5] winning in six categories, including Best Film, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay for Dupontel, and Best Supporting Actor for Marié.

Plot

Salon owner Suze Trappet is diagnosed with a terminal autoimmune disease related to her job, and decides to find the child she was forced by her parents to abandon when she was 15 years old. She visits the local authorities to help, who say it must be referred internally. Coincidentally, while she is meeting with M Dupuis at the office, Jean-Baptiste Cuchas, the head of IT for internal affairs, attempts suicide after being dismissed in favour of a younger colleague, ending his video suicide note with the phrase “bye bye morons”. He accidentally fires his shotgun through the wall instead of at himself, hitting M Dupuis and prompting an evacuation of the building.

While JB is incapacitated, Suze, who remained in the building, realises that he works for internal affairs, watches his suicide note and steals the computer containing it. She promises to return it to him, clearing his name, if he will help her find her child. He accompanies her to the archives and meet the archivist Serge Blin, who was blinded by a police shooter in a case of mistaken identity and has a fear of the police as a result. With Serge's help they find an address, but police arrive and arrest JB, while Suze and Serge escape.

Serge guides Suze to the address in the file, where she sees a young man and is overcome with emotion. While she is distracted, a delivery driver hits her car and mistakes Serge for the driver. In fear of arrest, Serge drives off in the car, hitting many vehicles before colliding with the police car transporting JB. With all the passengers except JB incapacitated, he escapes and finds Suze. She returns his computer to him with the suicide note, but instead of turning himself in as intended, JB uses his knowledge of the system and computer skills to locate Dr Lint, the obstetrician who delivered her baby.

Dr Lint now has advanced Alzheimer's and cannot remember anything, but they find his diary, which is in indecipherable handwriting. They take the diary to his wife, who is able to tell them that Dr Lint had arranged for Suze's son to be spared child services and instead arranged for him to be adopted by another, infertile, patient of his. That patient is known in the diary only by a nickname, but Dr Lint has a moment of clarity and comes home, where he is able to remember the name.

JB realises the police are tracking him via his computer as he locates Suze's son, now identified as Adrien. He has a successful career, but JB spots inconsistencies in his lifestyle and realises he is in love with a colleague, Clara. They follow him to his workplace and JB hacks into the office to set up a situation where Adrien and Clara are trapped in a lift together. He broadcasts Suze's voice over the intercom into the lift, where she advises Adrien to disclose his feelings to Clara.

The police arrive on the scene, but Serge distracts them while Suze and JB get away. After arresting Serge, they follow JB and Suze to an empty car park. With armed police threatening JB, Suze takes his gun and walks out towards the police. After a moment, JB joins her and asks to “come with her”. They embrace and kiss, say “bye bye morons”, then Suze raises the gun, prompting the police to gun them down.

Stylised footage of a 15-year-old Suze dancing with the father of her child plays over the start of the credits.

Cast

Release

The film was released on October 21, 2020 in France.[1]

Reception

Bye Bye Morons received positive reviews in France. However, Les Inrockuptibles found that, despite the irreverent title, the general message was too consensual and that filming bordered on kitsch.[6] Abroad, The Guardian called it a "frantically misjudged French farce (that) doesn’t travel well'.[7] while Mark Keizer in a review for Variety wrote, "There is another character in “Bye Bye Morons” whose name is a cheeky in-joke. A brief mention of a Francine Weber is a clear tip of the chapeau to French filmmaker Francis Veber (“Le Dîner de Cons,” “The Toy”). Both are beloved French farces, whereas Dupontel’s film, which doesn’t lack for ambition, only focus, fails to live up to the Veber touch or to the dystopian sci-fi classic that has served as its creator’s longtime inspiration."[8]

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
2021 César Awards Best Film Won [5][9][10]
Best Director Albert Dupontel Won
Best Actress Virginie Efira Nominated
Best Actor Albert Dupontel Nominated
Best Supporting Actor Nicolas Mairé Won
Best Original Screenplay Albert Dupontel Won
Best Cinematography Alexis Kavyrchine Won
Best Editing Christophe Pinel Nominated
Best Costume Design Mimi Lempicka Nominated
Best Production Design Carlos Conti Won
Best Original Music Christophe Julien Nominated
Best Sound Jean Minondo, Gurwal Coïc-Gallas, Cyril Holtz Nominated
2022 Goya Awards Best European Film Nominated [11]
Magritte Awards Best Actress Virginie Efira Nominated [12]

References

  1. ^ a b "Bye Bye Morons de Albert Dupontel (2019) - UniFrance". UniFrance. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
  2. ^ "Adieu les cons (2020) - Boxoffice". The Numbers. Retrieved August 17, 2021.
  3. ^ Keslassy, Elsa (October 28, 2020). "Gaumont posts sales on Albert Dupontel's curfew-beating hit 'Bye Bye Morons' (exclusive)". Screen Daily. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
  4. ^ Keslassy, Elsa (February 10, 2021). "Emmanuel Mouret's 'Love Affairs' Leads France's Cesar Nominations". Variety. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
  5. ^ a b Tartaglione, Nancy (February 10, 2021). "César Awards: 'Love Affair(s),' 'Adieu Les Cons,' 'Summer Of 85' Lead Nominations; 'Two Of Us' Scores Four Nods". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
  6. ^ ""Adieu les cons", un Dupontel bien édulcoré | Les Inrocks". lesinrocks.com/ (in French). Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  7. ^ Bradshaw, Peter (July 22, 2021). "Bye Bye Morons review – frantically misjudged French farce doesn't travel well". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  8. ^ Keizer, Mark (December 24, 2021). "'Bye Bye Morons' Review ('Adieu les cons'): César Winner Pales in Comparison to Its Influences". Variety. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  9. ^ "Les nominations aux César 2021". UGC. February 10, 2021.
  10. ^ Tartaglione, Nancy (March 12, 2021). "César Awards Winners: 'Adieu Les Cons' Named Best Film, 'Another Round' Takes Foreign Pic Prize – Full List". Deadline Hollywood.
  11. ^ "'El buen patrón', absoluta favorita para los Goya 2022 con 20 nominaciones: lista completa de nominados". Cinemanía (in Spanish). November 29, 2021 – via 20minutos.es.
  12. ^ "Voici les nommés de la 11e cérémonie des Magritte du Cinéma". Le Soir (in French). January 12, 2022. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
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