AllMovie

In this gently satirical comedy, after the death of his grandmother, Thierry (Denis Podalydès), a nebbishy anthropologist who has been living in France, returns to the Swiss village of his birth for the funeral. After the service, Thierry is approached by his uncles Kurt (Peter Wyssbrod) and Walter (Walo Lüönd), who have interesting news -- his late grandmother left Thierry an inheritance of two million Swiss francs, but only under the condition that he return to Switzerland and lead a life in keeping with the traditional Swiss lifestyle. Thierry and his girlfriend, Sophie (Emmanuelle Devos), decide to give it a try as his cousin Aloïs (Vincent Perez) gives the couple a crash course in the finer points of mountain climbing, fondue making, and other popular Swiss pastimes. Bienvenue en Suisse was screened as part of the "Un Certain Regard" series at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival.