Happy Easter

Stephane Margelle is a self assured charmer who heads out with his wife Sophie for an Easter weekend away. He soon crosses paths with Julie, a stunning young woman who has just had a quarrel with her married lover. Back in his apartment he arranges a weekend of light flirtation, convinced nothing too serious will come of it. But when Sophie returns unexpectedly, he improvises a wild cover story claiming that Julie is actually his long lost daughter. Julie agrees to play along, and the lie quickly mushrooms into a cascade of increasingly ridiculous deceptions and run ins, drawing in friends, relatives and strangers and turning the city into a stage for farce.

Directed by Georges Lautner, Happy Easter is a French comedy with a script credited to Jean Poiret. It features Jean Paul Belmondo and Sophie Marceau in a brisk, cheeky farce that plays on desire, disguise and improvised fixes.

The reception appears mixed, with a rating around 5.9 out of 10 from about 150 votes, signaling that the film lands with a niche audience. The story probes themes of honesty versus deception, the appetites and vanity of adult romance, and how farce thrives on mistaken identities and quick witted improvisation.

While not a landmark, the film sits among mid 80s French comedies that paired glossy stars with breezy plots. It showcases a confident screen presence from Belmondo and Marceau and reflects a playful era of adult humor in French cinema.