The Do-Gooders (2005) — AI Story Visualization

Plot Analysis Summary

A failed old robbery reunites three aging accomplices for a final scheme whose apparent success is overturned by deception.

Story Structure — 5 Plot Phases

The Vault Betrayal

The four criminals attempt a disguised jewelry robbery, but a modified alarm traps one participant in the vault. The failed operation produces a long prison sentence and separates the surviving accomplices.

Key Events

• Cartier Heist Begins — Serge, henri, lucien, and Rémy / Max attempt to rob the jewelry store using disguises and an ambulance. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Rémy / Max Location: Place Vendôme Cartier store
• Smoke Infiltration — lucien triggers smoke while his accomplices enter disguised as firefighters. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien Location: Cartier jewelry store
• Vault Alarm Failure — The modified alarm locks Rémy / Max inside the vault, causing the robbery to fail. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Rémy / Max Location: Cartier vault
• Prison Sentence — Rémy / Max receives twenty-five years in prison for refusing to betray the accomplices. Characters: Rémy / Max, Serge, henri, lucien Location: French prison
• Twenty Four Years Pass — Rémy / Max dies in prison while the three accomplices practice separate trades abroad. Characters: Rémy / Max, Serge, henri, lucien Location: France and foreign cities

Exiles Without Direction

After the prison years, Serge, henri, and lucien live disconnected lives and struggle with personal or professional failure. A letter brings them back together in Paris.

Key Events

• Twenty Four Years Pass — Rémy / Max dies in prison while the three accomplices practice separate trades abroad. Characters: Rémy / Max, Serge, henri, lucien Location: France and foreign cities
• Serge Loses His Girlfriend — Serge works as a secondhand dealer and is recently rejected by his girlfriend. Characters: Serge Location: Montreal flea market
• henri's Sales Blunders — henri sells luxury cars while repeatedly making blunders with customers. Characters: henri Location: Geneva luxury car dealership
• lucien's Empty Promises — lucien works as a mediocre agent and promises his wife an unaffordable island trip. Characters: lucien Location: Ostend real estate office
• The Reunion Letter — A letter summons the three former accomplices back to Paris after their forced twenty-five-year separation. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien Location: Place Vendôme

The Inheritance Test

The will promises access to hidden loot but makes the inheritance conditional on assessing Rémy's gullibility. The suitcase is destroyed, and deception becomes necessary.

Key Events

• The Reunion Letter — A letter summons the three former accomplices back to Paris after their forced twenty-five-year separation. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien Location: Place Vendôme
• Will Reveals Hidden Loot — The will claims the original loot remains hidden inside a sock among police-sealed property. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien Location: Paris notary office
• Rémy Is Tested — The three must judge whether Rémy is gullible enough to deserve a share of the hidden loot. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Rémy / Max Location: Paris
• Suitcase Is Destroyed — The police mistake a suitcase left at the station for a bomb and destroy it. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Rémy / Max Location: Train station left luggage office
• False Family Suitcase — The three use a suitcase falsely presented as belonging to Rémy / Max's late father. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Rémy / Max Location: Paris
• The Final Plan Unveiled — The inheritance is revealed to be a plan to steal taxpayers' checks from postal transit. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Rémy / Max Location: Paris meeting place

A Treasury Opportunity

The promised inheritance turns out to be an ambitious plan targeting taxpayers' checks in postal transit. The old companions recruit Rémy and prepare a new criminal operation.

Key Events

• The Final Plan Unveiled — The inheritance is revealed to be a plan to steal taxpayers' checks from postal transit. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Rémy / Max Location: Paris meeting place
• Gang Reassembles — The three companions prepare the final operation and recruit Rémy into the gang. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Rémy / Max Location: Paris
• Postal Disguises Deployed — Serge and henri operate in postal disguises while the gang moves through the tax-payment transit system. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Rémy / Max Location: Postal service route

Diamonds And Deception

The postal robbery succeeds despite Laura recognizing two disguised participants. The authorities pay in diamonds, but an unsuspected accomplice seizes the reward.

Key Events

• Postal Disguises Deployed — Serge and henri operate in postal disguises while the gang moves through the tax-payment transit system. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Rémy / Max Location: Postal service route
• Laura Spots The Disguise — Laura recognizes Serge and henri despite their postal-worker disguises. Characters: Serge, henri, Laura Location: Postal route
• Treasury Transit Robbery — The gang successfully steals taxpayers' checks while they are being transported to the Public Treasury. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Rémy / Max Location: Postal services transit
• Diamond Ransom Paid — The tax authorities pay a ransom of 23,659,412 euros in diamonds to conceal the embarrassing robbery. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Rémy / Max Location: Tax authority exchange
• Diamonds Seized — A previously unsuspected accomplice seizes the diamonds, disrupting the apparent success of the heist. Characters: Serge, henri, lucien, Laura, Rémy / Max Location: Post-heist exchange location

Story Breakdown

• Failed Jewelry Robbery — The original Cartier operation collapses because the alarm system unexpectedly traps a participant.
  • Smoke-Filled Infiltration — lucien creates smoke while the others enter through a firefighter disguise and ambulance.
  • Vault Lockdown — The modified alarm locks Rémy / Max inside the vault and causes the failure.
• Long Prison Separation — The failed robbery results in a lengthy sentence and decades of separation among the accomplices.
  • Silent Prison Sentence — Rémy / Max receives twenty-five years for not betraying the accomplices.
  • Foreign Lives — Serge, henri, and lucien pursue unsuccessful trades outside France.
• Unexpected Reunion — A letter brings the three surviving companions back to Place Vendôme after their forced exile.
  • Serge's Setback — Serge works at a Montreal flea market after being rejected by his girlfriend.
  • Three False Successes — The reunited companions boast about exaggerated achievements while concealing their failures.
• Conditional Inheritance — The will offers hidden loot only if the three companions determine whether Rémy is gullible enough.
  • Hidden Sock Loot — The original loot is said to remain inside a sock among police-sealed property.
  • Rémy's Gullibility Test — The companions assess Rémy before allowing him to qualify for the inheritance.
• False Suitcase Scheme — The expected recovery is disrupted when police destroy a suitcase they mistake for a bomb.
  • Station Destruction — The suitcase left at a train station is destroyed by police.
  • Deceptive Family Claim — The companions hand Rémy a suitcase falsely linked to his late father.
• Treasury Heist Plan — The inheritance is actually a plan to steal taxpayers' checks and demand ten percent of their value.
  • Postal Transit Target — The gang targets checks traveling through postal services during tax season.
  • Gang Reassembled — Serge, henri, and lucien recruit Rémy for the final operation.
• Successful Postal Robbery — The gang steals the checks despite a threat to its disguises and obtains a state-paid diamond ransom.
  • Disguises Spotted — Laura spots Serge and henri disguised as postal workers in a disguised van.
  • Diamond Payment — The tax authorities pay 23,659,412 euros in diamonds to avoid public embarrassment.
• Reward Betrayal — The apparent victory collapses when an unsuspected accomplice seizes the diamonds.
  • Romantic Disruption — A romantic subplot interferes with the apparently smooth course of the operation.
  • Diamonds Seized — A previously hidden participant takes the diamonds after the ransom exchange.

Directed by

Frédéric Forestier

Key Cast

• Gérard Lanvin — Serge
• Gérard Darmon — henri
• Jacques Villeret — lucien
• Claude Brasseur — Max (voice)
• Hélène Seuzaret — Nathalie