neumu [ cinematronic ]




	The Château
	Jesse Peretz Paul Rudd, Romany Malco, Sylvie Testud, Didier Flamand, Maria Verdi, Phillipe Nahon 2001		It's "Ugly Americans Vs. Arrogant French" in "The Château," a murky, fitfully funny, somewhat exhausting comedy that gives Paul Rudd a chance to play one of the neediest, most obnoxious guys to ever drive a moviegoer nuts. Graham Granville (Rudd) is a slacker/coffee-shop employee; his adopted brother Allen (Romany Malco) is a diligent, successful entrepreneur. Graham is white; Allen is black. They're always at odds, with only one thing in common: an inheritance. A great-uncle has left them a château in the French countryside, and the boys travel there under the impression that they've struck it rich. But they don't foresee the run-down condition of the mansion, nor do they expect the presence of four servants — smug butler Jean (Didier Flamand), young maid Isabelle (Sylvie Testud), elderly cook Sabine (Maria Verdi) and surly groundskeeper Pierre (Phillipe Nahon) — who are living there with no plans to leave. As Graham and Allen try to cope with the château's pitfalls, the staff plots against them.