Every profession brings its own unique set of insecurities, but there is one fear that is shared universally, regardless of each person’s chosen vocation: the fear of becoming redundant. We all like to believe ourselves to be irreplaceable and essential, since without the feeling of being consistently useful, there’s never really any purpose in continuing to work all that hard. However, sometimes it is essential to step away and realise that none of us is ultimately all that necessary, and in many cases just move through life as a result of luck. This is something that seems to fascinate François-Christophe Marzal, as he chooses it as the basis for Happiness Is So Close! (French: Ah que le bonheur est proche!), an intriguing dark comedy in which the director (in collaboration with the legendary Jean-Luc Bideau) sets out to explore the lengths to which one will go to remain relevant. The story follows Jean-Luc, a respected stage actor who has captivated audiences for decades with his incredible talents and status as one of the finest performers of his generation. However, he has been fortunate enough to grow quite old, and while he remains passionate about his profession, his mind and body are evidently not nearly as strong as they were before. This becomes clear as he rehearses for a performance of Don Quixote, the role being one that he has been waiting his entire life to play, to the point where the discovery that the producers have hired an understudy to secretly shadow Jean-Luc in case he is not able to make it through the production throws him into a state of despair, leading him down a path where reality and fiction begin to blur. A wonderfully offbeat film that tackles some intimidating subject matter while still being exceptionally funny where required, Happiness Is So Close! is an interesting examination of the mind of an actor trying to understand where he stands in an industry he helped define, leading to a sharp and insightful satire about the relentless desire to succeed, even if it means venturing a bit further out of one’s comfort zone than usual.

If there is one subject that actors love to talk about the most, it would be themselves. Very few groups take themselves quite as seriously as those in the performing arts, and the sheer number of films about the art of acting makes this exceptionally clear. Fortunately, it’s also a subject that fascinates audiences, since we love any opportunity to peer behind the curtain, as it demystifies an already very enigmatic industry. From the start, Happiness Is So Close! establishes itself as a film about someone looking back on their journey as an actor, but rather than being a nostalgic, navel-gazing story of bittersweet self-reflection, the director chooses to go in a more interesting direction, creating a story in which themes of ageing and reflection interact with more dynamic, active themes that prevent it from becoming too cliched. The idea of spending years perfecting your skills, always having a particular goal in mind (in this case, a specific role that is usually only reserved for actors who are considered to have reached the absolute summit of their craft), only to have it all squandered by something as unavoidable as age, is something that this film spends a lot of time exploring in extraordinary detail, gradually and methodically unpacking the perspective of a man who would do anything to play this specific role, but who becomes a victim of his own body and mind, which simply can no longer bear the pressure of such a part. What is quite interesting is that the film never presents Jean-Luc as being feeble or incompetent in a way that could’ve been avoided – he’s clearly still very talented and a hard worker, so all the shortcomings that he has to deal with tend to be the result of matters out of his control, which makes the film even more heartbreaking. It’s a poignant approach to a relatively common theme of someone looking back at their journey, trying to understand how he could possibly have reached this point, only to have everything that he worked so hard for potentially taken away simply because he can no longer physically handle the responsibility of curating such a project.

We cannot talk about this film or its central ideas without discussing Jean-Luc Bideau, who is not only the reason the film works, but the conceptual anchor for the entire production – without his involvement, this film simply would not have existed. It does make sure to acknowledge right from the start that Bideau is not playing himself directly, but rather a character that is merely inspired by him, where his decades-long career on every conceivable medium is reduced to a smaller, more compact depiction of a celebrated stage actor seeking out one final triumph. Bideau is an astonishing actor, someone who has always been capable of drawing our attention through his magnetic screen presence and ability to oscillate between emotional extremes. This is a fantastic showcase for him as an actor, and while there is no indication that he is entertaining retirement in any way, there is a quality to this film, and specifically his performance, that feels like an active attempt to reflect on his journey, the kind of rumination that tends to only make sense when it is someone towards the end of their career, assessing their choices to get to this particular point. It’s not surprising that absolutely every aspect of Happiness Is So Close! makes it clear that it is primarily a 70-minute showcase of Bideau’s astonishing gifts, and he makes sure to run the gamut in terms of showcasing his skills, being equally as adept at comedy as he is at drama, which is precisely what gives this film such a distinct identity. Bideau has a certain quality about him that makes his work so incredibly captivating, where he’s able to play such a curmudgeon, but remain so incredibly likeable, which is by no means an easy accomplishment. Part of this comes from the strong writing (especially since the script is written by Nicholas Frey, who has collaborated closely with Bideau in the past), but also in how Bideau is evidently drawing from his own experiences, reflecting on his journey as an actor in a way that may not be quite as dramatic and filled with awkward encounters as we see in this film, but most certainly still has moments of quiet melancholy. There’s an authenticity to how he plays this part that ties the entire film together and makes it so incredibly moving.

Based on the subject matter, it is evident that Happiness Is So Close! is a film that had its work cut out for it, since there are some intimidating ideas that needed to be examined. Needless to say, everyone involved in its production was united in ensuring that its core ideas were brought to life in a way that feels genuine and meaningful, since this was not just a one-dimensional attempt at satirising the performing arts, but rather functions as a more insightful, captivating character study that needed to be pitched at the appropriate tonal level, or else risk having its more meaningful elements lost in the process.  The film exists at the perfect intersection between comedy and drama – there’s a lot of humour scattered throughout the film, not only in terms of the central conflict of an actor being plunged into a state of panic when he realises that he is potentially going to be replaced (which is fertile ground for an outrageous comedy-of-errors), but also in showing the inherent eccentricity that comes with pursuing a life in the arts. This more upbeat tone is complemented by the more melancholic elements, where it does veer towards the more sombre and reflective when required, showing Jean-Luc’s efforts to hold onto whatever fickle grasp on reality he currently has, which is a bittersweet way of showing his internal concerns, making it quite difficult to not feel absolutely enamoured with how this film constructs itself as more than just a wacky, off-the-wall comedy. Every emotion embedded in Happiness Is So Close! feels authentic and earned, with the story never resorting to the obvious tropes – there are a few predictable elements that are truly only there to offer some cohesion, and the subtle, nuanced approach to exploring the sometimes complex themes of this film does make for something quite remarkable. Far too many films with this subject matter would feel impelled to fill every scene with humour, so it feels like quite a rebellion against conventions to be daring enough to add layers of intentional sadness to balance everything out and show many different sides of this fascinating story.

On the surface, we may not expect much from Happiness Is So Close!, which does seem like a relatively conventional comedy about an actor trying to deal with the idea that he is being usurped, the victim of a theatrical mutiny after he is deemed slightly too frail to inspire constant confidence in his ability to see a responsibility through. It’s a very accurate summary of the premise of the film, but only begins to scratch the surface of why this story is so incredibly compelling, which is where we begin to see all the potential shining through quite brilliantly. The film is quite a simple affair, having a clear purpose and a willingness to tie together all of its various loose ends into a neat, compact blend of comedy and drama that feels actively enthralling and deeply captivating, even at its most obvious. Its most significant achievement is being able to explore such extraordinarily deep, meditative concepts while never being overly dense or heavy-handed – we can attribute this to the constant humour that guides the film, but this is only partially why the film works, since many aspects immediately draw our attention, especially as the story becomes increasingly more complex in terms of negotiating the narrow boundary between reality and fiction, something that becomes integral to navigating this film and its often more peculiar perspective. It is a small, intimate character study that is primarily used as a vehicle for one of the most interesting and engaging acts of his generation to showcase his skills and prove that he can still command the screen, while also allowing him to explore his personal quandaries, which perhaps may not be quite as tense as the character he is playing, but has a sense of vulnerability that we cannot ignore or overlook. It’s a fascinating portrait of fame, artistic expression and the challenges that come with working through certain challenges, bundled into a bitingly funny and profoundly moving character study that somehow manages to condense some enormous themes into a poetic and delightful curio that is far more profound than its small size may initially suggest.