This is one of these films in your country that for some reason, somehow, has transformed into a national treasure. People will immediately dislike you and frown at you when you recall how you don't think it's a good film. They'll immediately think there's something wrong with you, when really the film isn't even that defensible, it's not like the film is amazing on any level or anything, it's just a crowd favorite. Objectively, this comedy is well enough constructed in that it allows for wacky scenarios to take place and go berserk from there, all sorts of strange happenings in subplots that eventually connect. The gags are those of a prude society of the time (early 80's) liberating itself with silly, stuck-up eruptions of vulgarity whether verbally or through act. It isn't really funny, most of the comedy here being cheap sex-oriented, taboo type humor. It's barely entertaining at all to watch now, moving back from it in the later decades, but at one point this was the absolute blast of absolute blasts, and it's hard to even imagine this is the same Jean-Marie Poiré who, a decade later, would go on to write the mythical, legendary "Les Visiteurs", for this reviewer, the single greatest french film of all-time.

For people that don't watch French movies too often this is certainly one you have to watch. All the actors from the comedian group "Splendid" are all amongst the best comedians from France. I must have see this movie like ten times and still it makes me laugh like it was the first time. Just thinking about some cult scenes in it makes me smile. The dialogues are of such high level in comedy that almost everyone that I know that saw the movie remembers every punchline from this movie. Josiane Balasko as the uptight boss of SOS Service, Thierry Lhermitte and Anémone as the warmhearted employees, Christian Clavier as the frustrated gay, Gerard Jugnot as the psychotic bad Santa, Marie-Anne Chazel as the little bit retarded wife of Santa, and Bruno Moynot as the unfortunate mister Preskovic are all sublime in their roles. I just can't wait for Christmas to watch it again...

Like all French film comedy dialogs are almost impossible to translate into another language, a pity because this is a comedy feast of humor, sometimes very dark. The story is simple, it is just an excuse to create a series of hilarious situations in which actors are a pleasure to spread wickedness and stupidity from the sublime sometimes flirt with the excellent taste bad. I do not know if the French actors (Josiane Balasko, Thierry Lhermitte, Gérard Jugnot, Anemone, Martin Lamotte, Bruno Moynot, Anne-Claire Chazel, Christian Clavier, Jacques François) are known in the Anglo-Saxon world, they are famous France for their many comedies, often acidic. The American remake is a true abomination, that it is better never see.

It is the funniest movie I have ever seen, period. This is a cult movie in France, absolutely hilarious. 100 times better than the american remake (I don't even remember the title). If you haven't seen it, please do yourself a favor, get it by all means.