Kev Adams: Why did he want to cut one of the funniest jokes in this movie?

Did you know that test screenings are increasingly being used by French cinema, especially for comedies? According to BFM TVwho conducted an investigation on the subject, “Filmmakers rely more and more on public feedback, thanks to a system of test screenings that allows them to refine their comedy films as much as possible.

Among the comedies that used this method, we find Pensioner’s House 2, in cinemas from February 14. Previously, these screenings were staged after editing, after the film was finished.

It is a necessary process

“It didn’t make much sense. The film was finished, so we couldn’t change anything. Now that it’s integrated into the process, we can change the details, but very important ones”explains Kev Adams, producer, screenwriter and lead actor of Retirement Home 2.

The latter then confides that he has already used test footage for the first episode of the comic saga. “They got very rich. In the sequel, they were more. Test screenings are an opportunity. It’s a tool that should become essential for comedies in the years to come.”Kev Adams believes.

Thus, thanks to this system, director Claude Zid Jr. was able to refine the gags and make them more effective. He also cut 10 minutes to make it more efficient. “The first edit was 1h52. It was a little long. We cut the tails of the scenes, the little valve that fell off. Sometimes we added jokes, sometimes we removed”The director reveals.

The audience saves the stage!

Kev Adams in particular adds that a somewhat daring valve was saved by the community. This is a replica of Rico played by Enrico Macias. The elder, who is deaf, falls in love with Fleurette, played by Firmin Richard, and tries to seduce her. “We say to him, ‘Get comfortable,’ and he goes, ‘Do you want to drive me crazy?’ “Kev Adams explains.

“Maybe it’s me who imagines it too violently in the writing, but in the mouth of Enrico Macias there’s a side that’s a little soft, a little crazy, a little out of touch with reality. It makes me curious to know where the audience was laughing. Which characters they preferred or not. We tried Listening to the audience“, emphasizes the 32-year-old actor.

For reference, the first opus of Nursing Home, released two years ago, attracted 2 million viewers. The second part will be successful again; It gathered more than 440,000 curious people during its first week of operation.