Closet, The  A-
By Kage Alan

Francois Pignon (Daniel Auteuil) leads a thoroughly unexciting existence. His co-workers believe him to be a dullard, his ex-wife can’t be bothered to talk to him and his teenage son finds him boring as can be. After 20 years of faithful service as an accountant at a condom producing facility, Pignon overhears a conversation between a homophobic/racist co-worker, Felix (Gérard Depardieu), and someone else that he is to be fired. That evening while Pignon is trying to decide if he has the guts to jump from his window and kill himself, he meets his new next-door neighbor who offers to help him come up with a way to avoid getting fired. The solution is simple. The neighbor will take some photos with Pignon’s face and digitally superimpose them over other pictures that portray the dullard as a practicing homosexual and mail them anonymously to the company. Since corporations are more sensitive about backlash from the gay community along with all the bad press that comes with it, they will keep him on.

It doesn’t take long for the photographs to circulate at work and while Pignon does nothing different than he has for the past 20 years, everybody’s perception of him changes. Seeing an opportunity to work on the crass Felix, two other co-workers conspire to start a rumor that he (Felix) will lose his job unless people start seeing him in a much nicer light. This forces to Felix to befriend the person he despises most, Pignon, and make a number of grand efforts in true comedic fashion just to save a job that isn’t really in jeopardy. Throw in two truly homophobic co-workers, gossipmongers, a beautiful supervisor who finds herself growing more and more attracted to Pignon and a lie that spins wildly out of control and you’ve got yourself a very funny and often hysterical look at a paranoid corporate world. It’s simply a delight!