The Valet (2007)

French writer-director Francis Veber is back with another high-concept comedy. Veber, whose recent films include The Dinner Game and The Closet, brings The Valet in at a fast, light 85 minutes. Standup comedian Gad Elmaleh plays the schlubby title character, enlisted by a billionaire CEO to be the media-distracting decoy on the arm of the rich man's supermodel mistress. The plan complicates existing and potential relationships, all of which troublingly overlap. Daniel Au-tay-ee is typically funny as the harried CEO, and Kristin Scott Thomas amuses as his snooty wife. Though it's a bit too mild for its own good, The Valet showcases well-drawn comic characters, including a sickly doctor who winds up being treated by his own patients instead of the other way around.