Fifi Martingale

Jacques Rozier’s final film is a joyful compendium of his major themes and strategies as well as one of the funniest depictions of the theater ever committed to celluloid. When a director (Mike Marshall) decides—out of superstition—to overhaul his play after a successful six-month run, he unwittingly instigates changes that appear to doom the production. Enter, by pure coincidence, Gaston (Jean Lefebvre), a friend of the star, Fifi (Lydia Feld as Lili Vonderfeld), and the possessor of a near-perfect memory that allows him to quickly assume one of the major roles. Everything seems to fall into place until Gaston gambles his advance to raise money for his own struggling theatrical company, loses his recall abilities, and becomes the target of revenge by the man he replaced onstage (Yves Afonso). Filled to the brim with punning wordplay, theatrical allusions, and the delicious chaos of backstage maneuvering, Fifi Martingale is perhaps Rozier’s finest comedic take on the wild digressions and nick-of-time improvisations that make up both art and life.