Jean-Luc Abel

Three penniless artists become friends in modern-day Paris: Rodolfo, an Albanian painter with no visa, Marcel, a playwright and magazine editor with no publisher, and Schaunard, a post-modernist composer of execrable noise.

Antoine works in a bar in Paris. One evening on his way home from work, he intervenes when a man tries to commit suicide. He feels strangely guilty about having saved the man's life and constantly tries to help him, make things better. No matter what Antoine does, he can't get Louis's mind off Blanche, the woman of his dreams, his sole obsession, the reason why he wanted to die... Antoine decides to look for her, but doesn't let Louis know.

In Paris, Lulu, a passionate policeman, works with the faith of a rookie, despite the sclerotic bureaucracy and the incompetence or negligence of some of his colleagues. In his new position as a narcotics inspector, he tries to keep his sanity as he witnesses the worst of the human condition.

Students of film history will appreciate the many tributes to famous films of yore which appear in this first-time feature directed and written by former drama teacher Francis Huster. In the story, a mild-mannered bank clerk has heroic dreams of being a real he-man. Given his diffident, shy nature, it comes as a bit of a surprise that not only does he actually have a girlfriend, but he has managed to get her pregnant. However, she doesn't fit his image of himself, and he can't bring himself to marry her. When the bank he works in is robbed by a daring group which includes a magnetically attractive woman, the clerk throws his lot in with them and becomes an outlaw.

Leo, an accomplished playboy, neglects his girlfriend and enjoys parties. His girlfriend parts from him and then, when he wants to see her once more, he suffers an accident. He survives, but his whole life is about to change when he becomes wheelchair-bound.

A girl arrives at her audition ten minutes early. Finding it difficult to learn her lines, she approaches a man nearby for help.

Didier, 28 years old, is still livning with his parents. Prisoner of his own habits, he doesn't communicate with them anymore. When he casually meets his former girlfriend, Valerie, he finds again his serenity.

Every week, Virgil makes his father Ernest dream by telling him about his boxing exploits during a visit. Every week, Virgil comes to dream by meeting the eyes of Margot, a young woman who is also visiting. This week, Ernest tells her that he is going to get out and that he will finally be able to see Virgil in the ring. There's just one problem: Virgil hasn't boxed in three years.