With a Friend Like Harry... (2000)

Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

Really Surprised!

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

When the film begins, Michel is in the hot car with his wife and three small kids. It's summer and there's no air conditioning...and it's not surprising the kids are behaving like brats and Michel is at his wit's ends. When the family stops for a break, Michel goes to the bathroom and there an old acquaintance, Harry, recognizes him...though Michel cannot recall the guy. It seems that Harry is a major fan of Michel and has lots of fond memories of the guy...and Michel is just dumbfounded. Despite this, when Harry invites himself and his girlfriend to their home, Michel agrees and they all have a lovely evening together. During this evening, Harry inexplicably recalls a poem that Michel wrote when he was a teen. Despite decades having passes, he even remembers this poem word-for-word and Harry decides to take on a new project--to get Michel to begin writing once again. While this seems like a laudable goal, it soon gets strange. First, Harry decides that the hot car isn't what a writer needs and when it breaks down, he impulsively buys Michel and his family a new SUV with air conditioning!! Given that they barely know each other, this is very strange. Second, Harry isn't about to stop at just buying his old colleague a car...he'll remove all the distractions from Michel's life...whatever they might be!This is a very dark and enjoyable film. It's also, in a sick way, a bit of a comedy. Fortunately, it's unique and keeps your attention- -and it's well worth seeing--especially for the strange yet satisfying ending. The film is taut, unusual and well written.

And I'm not only talking about the main character, but for the movie as a whole. It is a black comedy, but as others have stated, it is more psychological (or dare I say "psychotic"?), rather than laugh out funny (as in Serial Lover for example).But if you are in the mood and have a liking for movies like this, Harry will indeed "help" you, enjoy this experience. And although I was expecting this to be remade in America, I'm also not surprised that no one has touched that subject yet. It's pretty dark, creepy and twisted. So the question you have to ask yourself is plain and simple: Are you up for it or do you rather watch something lighter (in mood and comedy)?

'Harry' is a story about an ordinary middle-class couple, Michel and Claire and their three young children. They're on their way to visit Michel's parents when they pull over at a rest stop. While Michel is in the bathroom, he's approached by Harry who identifies himself as a long lost high school acquaintance. Harry alludes to a poem that Michel wrote in high school along with a sci-fi novel as well as pointing to an incident in which Michel chipped his tooth while rough-housing during a soccer match.The problem is that Michel is unable to recognize Harry and this crucial plot point doesn't really ring true. It's unlikely that Michel would forget about Harry completely especially when we later learn that Michel's dentist father did some bridge work for him and Michel's brother Eric also can recall who he is. Somehow, the film's scenarists implausibly suggest that Michel has become emotionally stunted to the point where he's lost some of his basic memories.Harry is traveling with his bimbo girlfriend, Plum, and manage to get themselves invited back to Michel and Claire's summer house (the trip to Michel's parents is cancelled when one of their daughters develops a fever). Before you know it, Harry and Plum are sleeping over. Harry is positively creepy as a good number of his conversations involve one kind of sexual innuendo or another. Claire is a bit suspicious but Michel passively allows Harry to insinuate himself into their lives. It becomes obvious that Harry is totally obsessed with Michel, especially when he keeps encouraging him to start writing again—an avocation Michel dispensed with early on during high school.At first it appears that Michel will become the target of Harry's creepy obsession. But soon we see that it's Michel's parents Harry has it in for. He ends up showing up at their apartment late at night pretending that Michel is in trouble and coaxes the parents to follow him in his car to Michel and Claire's. On the way, Harry maneuvers his car behind the parents' car and manages to push them off the road, down a cliff. While the parents are killed, we never learn why. The only clue that's offered is that Harry was upset over some poor dental work that Michel's father was responsible for in the distant past.The death of the parents puts Michel into a tailspin. He closets himself away in the bathroom and begins obsessing about trying to finish his 'Flying Monkey' short story which he began in high school. Claire pays a visit to Harry at a hotel where Plum and he are now staying. She mentions to Harry that Michel is trying to write again and crazy Harry thinks that's a good thing. But Claire also makes it clear that Harry's no longer welcome back at the house. Meanwhile, Michel's brother Eric has shown up for the parents' funeral and Harry ends up doing him in too.The denouement makes little sense. Harry returns to Michel and Claire's summer house and kills Plum after she tells him she wants to start a family. Instead of hiding the body himself, he asks Michel to help him dispose of it by throwing it down a well in the front yard. After Michel helps Harry to dispose of Plum, Harry then simply asks Michel to help him slaughter Claire and the kids. Did you ever hear of a serial killer who becomes obsessed with one family member but wants to kill everyone else? In real life, serial killers end up killing everybody but not here! Michel comes to his senses and stabs Harry with a knife; he then throws him down the well and then shovels dirt so that the bodies will not be found.All's well that ends well when Claire asks Michel what happened to Harry and Plum and he tells them they had to leave but left "sending their love". The upside is that Harry stoked Michel's creative fires after all. He begins writing a new novel entitled "The Eggs" (Harry earlier had spoken approvingly of eating an egg every morning to help with virility). Claire tells Michel she read his new story and thinks it great that he's begun writing again.One problem is left unexplored. What happened with the investigation into Eric's disappearance? Wouldn't the police start poking around after Eric's friends start asking about him? And wouldn't they look at Michel as a possible suspect, especially after the recent mysterious deaths of their parents? Some internet posters have offered the dubious theory that Harry is actually the altar ego of Michel and that he is the actual murderer. I don't have the space to debunk that theory here but plenty of well-informed postings refute the entire fanciful idea.'A Friend Like Harry' expects you to figure out Harry's motives in trying to kill Michel's family as well as his obsession with Michel without much evidence. Yes, there are a few tantalizing clues thrown out here and there but the antagonist's motivations are intentionally left quite vague. And the fact that Harry makes no effort to hide his murderous nature from Michel at the film's end is almost laughable.'Harry' is a bit slow-moving but basically keeps your interest until the climax. Sergi Lopez can do little in the part of the demented Harry since the script calls for a character that's not plausible. Equally implausible is the character of Michel who never seems to have a clue that Harry wants to do harm to his family until the very end. Director Dominik Moll is obviously aiming for some Hitchcock-like suspense but leaves us with characters that do not add up in the end.

Director: Dominik Moll Cast: Laurent Lucas, Sergi López, Mathilde Seigner Hitchcock influenced tale that tells the story of Micheal(Laurent Lucas), a man who has a chance encounter with an old acquaintance named Harry from high school who insists that they catch up on old times. As it turns out Harry was a big fan of Micheal's writing in high school, but is dismayed to hear that he has since given up writing. Harry(Sergi López) then proceeds to "remove" everyone from Micheal's life that whom he deems a "distraction" so he can start writing again. This movie is good, but a little uneven because some scenes contain a good deal of suspense which in contrast makes others seem too boring and may make the viewer lose interest. Still a very interesting film that Hitchcock would probably enjoy. Recommended if you like Hitchcockesque suspense tales. 116 min.Rated R for language, some violence, and brief nudity