In December, on the eve of the holidays, two amateur robbers dress up as Santa Claus to rob a big store. One of them finds himself surrounded by kids and forced to tell them a story. He makes up a version of Aladdin that is more rock n’ roll than the original. Forget Jasmine, forget the genie, forget 1001 Nights: this adventure takes place in the heart of Bagdad.

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Kev Adams stars in one of the most successful French comedies of the last weeks: The New Adventures of Aladdin, directed by Arthur Benzaquen. A huge star at 24, it took him only five years to become the idol of a generation, starting on TV (Soda), moving to stand-up with The Young Man Show, and movies with (Les profs 1 and 2), thanks to his disconcerting ease on stage and in front of the camera. But he seems to have come to a screeching halt with this sketch flick that is so anachronistic that even the endless jokes can’t distract from this stumbling block. The dumb sight gags, puns, and references to classic movie scenes are funny at first but get very old, very fast. The script is too light and doesn’t tie the story together. The movie’s upside is the ensemble cast, made up of France’s funniest comedians, young and old, such as Michel Blanc, Jean-Paul Rouve, Audrey Lamy and Eric Judor.