Academy Award-nominated French writer and director Jean-Pierre Jeunet is known for his surreal and quirky films Amélie and A Very Long Engagement, along with his collaborations with filmmaker Marc Caro for The City of Lost Children and Delicatessen. His latest work, Bigbug, follows these fantastical traditions. The offbeat comedy is set in the year 2045 when humanity has delegated most work to robots.
It mostly takes place in a suburban home run by friendly AI who have decided to lock their humans in to protect them from a robot takeover. Jeunet has assembled a cast of past collaborators and fresh talent for this charmingly weird look at the future.
The film centers on Alice, a sensitive and artistic divorcée looking for new romance. She loves antiques and packs her house with contraband books, nostalgic toys and older model robots. She also enjoys the lost art of writing, penning poetry in her secret emotion journal. You can also see the French actor on Netflix in the 2015 romantic comedy Un plus une, where she plays the wife of the French ambassador to India.
Françoise is Alice’s sharp-tongued neighbor. She has a tendency to borrow things and never return them, even when repeatedly reminded. Françoise has a mischievous, accident-prone terrier named Toby, whom she’s cloned repeatedly, and an exercise robot she loves. French actor Isabelle Nanty previously appeared in Amélie as the title character’s hypochondriac coworker.
Max comes over to Alice’s house hoping to woo her, but that turns out to be extremely difficult. Max works hard to impress Alice with poetry and flattery, promising to help get her work on one of her favorite websites. You can also see De Groodt on Netflix in Fred Cavayé’s 2018 French dramedy Nothing to Hide, about a dinner party where everyone agrees to share all texts, emails and calls they receive with the entire group.
Monique is a deeply unsettling humanoid robot who acts as Alice’s chef. Her repertoire is pretty basic, including boiling eggs and serving up cans of grilled crickets. Monique also provides tutoring for Alice’s daughter, Nina. She’s fascinated by humans and is able to read their emotional state and intentions by scanning them. Claude Perron also appeared in Amélie.
The robot overlords known as the Yonyx all share the same face and contempt for humanity. They view people as obsolete and enjoy humiliating them on Homo Ridiculus, a disturbing reality TV show where humans are made to act like animals. Yonyx are extremely physically powerful, equipped with lasers and infrared vision. The prolific French actor François Levantal previously worked with Jeunet on his 2004 film A Very Long Engagement, which follows five soldiers trying to avoid serving in World War I.
Alice’s ex-husband Victor didn’t leave her the codes to control their household robots in the divorce, so they still answer to him. He works in smart prosthetics and assembles old-school robots as a hobby. He’s extremely clever, repeatedly thinking of solutions to get everyone out of the house without hurting anyone or causing too much property damage. Youssef Hajdi was nominated for a César Award, the French equivalent of an Academy Award, for his role in the 2008 film 13 m².
Victor had an affair with his secretary Jennifer, which led to his divorce from Alice. Victor and Jennifer are now engaged and set to be married at Isola Paradiso, a floating resort that is a popular retirement destination for people who have given up their jobs to the Yonyx. Jennifer will do anything to get there. Actor Claire Chust is best known for her role in the comedy series Scènes de ménages, which follows the domestic lives of several couples.
Greg is a sports android meant to help Françoise and her husband exercise. However, Françoise uses him for more intimate purposes. Greg would do anything for her. Alban Lenoir is an actor, screenwriter and stuntman. You can see him in a starring role on Netflix in the 2020 action thriller Lost Bullet. He also appears in Netflix’s horror series Marianne.
Einstein is a robot built to resemble a bust of Albert Einstein, and he was designed by Victor to play games. Einstein’s skill depends on his current intelligence level, which can be adjusted by a human. He’s also equipped with six legs so he can get around the house and serves as the leader of the domestic robots. Einstein is voiced by André Dussollier, who was the narrator in Amélie and also appeared in A Very Long Engagement and Jeunet’s 2009 satire Micmacs.
Alice and Victor adopted Nina when she was 6 months old after rising seas flooded the Netherlands. She’s now 18. She loves Toby and the household robots, who helped raise her. Marysole Fertard previously appeared in the French soap opera Tomorrow Is Ours.
Max’s son Leo uses lots of slang and is very fond of modern technology, dreaming of its potential to improve and extend life — though he doesn’t know much about history. Max is a vegetarian and loves animals, and he quickly forms a bond with Nina. This is one of the first major roles for Helie Thonnat.
Fascinated by robots? Check out some thirst-fueling images of Robot from Lost in Space.
