Keep an Eye Out! (French: Au poste!) is a 2018 French comedy directed by Quentin Dupieux.
A man named Fugain spends the night in a police station. He is considered the main suspect in a crime and is interrogated by Buron (Benoît Poelvoorde).
This film provides examples of:
- Breaking the Fourth Wall:
- As Fugain and Buron tell each other stories, they can see each other in the flashbacks just like the audience does.
- The police station room is later revealed to be a theater stage.
- Clock Discrepancy: Played with. During the flashbacks while Fugain tells what happened earlier, clocks display inconsistent times.
- Comically Missing the Point: Buron's son mentions how he considered committing suicide earlier in the day. Buron doesn't seem to care.
- Eye Scream: Philippe, the one-eyed police officer, makes for several puns and visual gags. He is eventually hit in the eye.
- Headphones Equal Isolation: Philippe listens to music with a personal stereo while working. Buron has a very hard time trying to get his attention.
- He's Dead, Jim: Played with. Buron asks Fugain, who has found a dead body, how he knew he was dead. Fugain says he looked exactly as in a novel.
- Proscenium Reveal: Near the end of the film, the police station room is revealed to be a theater stage.
- Retro Universe: It's hard to tell when the plot is supposed to happen. Some things are clearly from 2018, but the police station looks super old and Buron uses an old typewriter instead of a computer.
- Shout-Out:
- On the film's poster, Benoît Poelvoorde mimics the pose Jean-Paul Belmondo took on the poster of 1975's Peur sur la ville while wearing similar clothes (a dark blue turtleneck) and a revolver holster, which themselves homaged Bullitt.
- The Proscenium Reveal is a homage to The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie.
- The Tooth Hurts: Fugain eats an oyster in a very literal manner, chewing on the shell.
- Verbal Tic: Most characters say "C'est pour ça" ("that's why") all the time. It annoys Buron.
