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(2003 - France)

Struggling Parisian actor Maurice Kurtz is passionately in love with his wife Perla (Bejo) and wishes he could provide her with a better life. He earns a meager income dubbing foreign films with the help of his friends. The future begins to look bright when they hear that superstar film director Grichenberg (Coyote) is prepping a big-budget Yiddish version of "The Merchant of Venice". They all show up at a "cattle call" audition hoping to land bit parts.

To his great surprise, Maurice's reading wins him the leading role of Shylock, but then loses it a few days later when Grichenberg is forced to give it to an American star. To make mattters worse, Maurice finds out that his wife Perla is dying from cancer. Anxious about her condition, Maurice and his buddies devise a variety of scams to convince Perla that her husband is still making the movie that will make him famous.

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Cast

• Stephane Freiss...............Maurice Kurtz
• Berenice Bejo.........................Perla Kurtz
• Francois Berleand..........Benny Schwarz
• Lionel Abelanski................Simon Laufer
• Olivier Sitruk........................Sami Rebbot
• Peter Coyote.........Rudolph Grichenberg
• Stephan Guerin-Tillie.................Edouard

Credits

• Directed by..........................Steve Suissa
• Written by....Daniel Goldenberg, Daniel Cohen, Steve Suissa & Sophie Tepper
• Music.............................David Marouani
• Cinematography....Guillaume Schiffman
•  Length:  89 minutes
• Premiered in France October 13, 2004

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November 17, 2004:
Philadelphia Inquirer: "Several small tarts were on the dessert plate that had 80th year written in chocolate. It was a sweet finale to an early VIP dinner Saturday at the DoubleTree Hotel for the start of a yearlong celebration of the Gershman Y's eight decades. The Broad Street Y is the Jewish Community Center of Greater Philadelphia's arts and cultural branch... About 30 guests were at the dinner prior to the first showing of Le Grand Role at the 24th annual Jewish Film Festival. Dining as special guests were Peter Coyote, the film's star, and Jean-David Levitte, French ambassador to the United States... About 500 people saw the Coyote film, which was followed by a dessert reception called Around the World in 80 Years and featured a 17-foot-high hot-air balloon as centerpiece.

December 4, 2004:
"Steve Suissa, director of Le Grand Role, will arrive in Hong Kong next week when his film is screened at the 27th French Cinepanorama. He says that the strength of the film's story lies in its universal themes. Quoting The Standard (HK) - "Suissa speaks highly of American character actor Peter Coyote, who is cast as a film director. 'Professionally, it's one of the best encounters I've ever had. This man is a big actor, sincere, fair, enthusiastic and generous. He brings all of these things to the film.'" The film was nominated for the 2004 Grand Prix Prize at the Paris Film Festival in Mach.

“A crowd-pleasing dramatic comedy about love, friendship, role-playing and Jewish pride…sprightly pace, sunny thesping, fine comic timing.”   ...Variety

"A sweet and touching film."  ...Arizona Daily Star

"This affectionate portrait of a Jewish subculture in upscale Paris is studded with oddly affecting moments."  Minneapolis/St. Paul City Papers

"Le Grand Role celebrates the white lie, the lengths that love will take us to nourish and sustain the illusions of those we love."  ...Maine Jewish Film Festival

"A charming and heartwarming film that illuminates the meaning of art, love and truth with pathos and humour."   ...Vancouver Jewish Film Festival

"Le Grand Role takes a unique look at the things that inspire us to be great (community, faith, love) and shows that, sometimes, inspiration can be greatness in and of itself."  ...Sarasota Film Festival

"A charming dramatic comedy about love, friendship, role-playing and Jewish pride."
...Pacific Jewish Film Festival

"A silly but ultimately sweet and poignant Le Grand Role."  ...Sun-Sentinel

"A comedy about friendship, faith and the acting life, Le Grand Role is unabashedly corny and tear-jerking - and still quite likable. Freiss, Bejo, a goateed, scene-stealing Coyote, and the guys playing the best friends make for a handsome, engaging cast, and the melodrama is bittersweet and sophisticated." ...Philadelphia Inquirer
 

SCREENINGS