King of Hearts

King of Hearts (originally Le Roi de Coeur) is a French film about a town in France that has been evacuated due to a bomb placed by the German army. The town's insane asylum is accidentially unlocked as the Germans are leaving and the inmates take over the town.

Plot summary Warning: Wikipedia contains spoilers

The film, directed by Philippe de Broca[?], stars Alan Bates as Charles Plumplick, a kilt-wearing Scottish soldier who is sent by his commanding officer to disarm the bomb. Plumpick, an army ornithology specialist in charge of carrier pigeons[?], is sent because he is one of the only men in the unit able to speak French.

When Plumpick enters the town, he unknowingly leaves the door to the insane assylum open while being chased by the Germans. When the Germans have left the town, all of the inmates leave the asylum and take over the town, working in the shops and living in the houses.

Having announced earlier to the former inmates that he was the King of Hearts, Plumpick is treated as the king and is subject to kingly duties as he frantically tries to find the bomb before it goes off.

The last scene is the image of Plumpick stading naked in front of the asylum with his pigeon cage, begging to be let in.

Cast Jacques Balutin
Alan Bates
Daniel Boulanger
Pierre Brasseur
Jean-Claude Brialy
Genevieve Bujold
Adolfo Celi
Françoise Christophe
Madeleine Clervanne
Marc Dudicourt
Julien Guiomar
Micheline Presle
Michel Serrault

References 1: http://us.imdb.com/Credits?0060908
2: http://www.foreignfilms.com/film.asp?film_id=6146