What Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne is about
Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne is a documentary portrait of one of the most singular voices in French comic history — a man who spent decades bending language until it broke, laughed, and somehow made perfect sense. Directed by Christophe Duthuron and running at a tight 1 hour 20 minutes, the film doesn't try to be a conventional biography. It's more personal than that. The title itself — roughly translating to "it was a faith... mine" — signals that this isn't a neutral retrospective. Someone loved this man's work. Deeply. And that feeling shapes every editorial choice in the film. The documentary traces Devos's life and stage career through his wordplay, his absurdist philosophy, and the particular brand of poetic nonsense that made him a fixture of French cultural life for half a century. No spoilers needed here — the subject's life is already public record — but the way Duthuron assembles the story is what makes this worth your time.
How Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne came together
The film was produced by Paris Première, the French cable channel that has long positioned itself as a home for arts, culture, and literary programming — so a documentary about Raymond Devos is, in many ways, exactly the kind of project you'd expect from them. What's striking is the emphasis on rare archival material. According to TV listings on programme-tv.net, the film is built around footage and documents that haven't been widely circulated, which gives it a different texture from the kind of clip-show tributes that tend to recycle the same handful of famous performances.
Director Christophe Duthuron is the creative engine here. A specialist in arts documentaries for French television, Duthuron brings a patient, attentive approach — he's not rushing to make Devos seem larger than life, because Devos already was. The documentary was listed as an inédit — a French broadcast term meaning it had never previously aired — when it premiered on Paris Première on June 20, 2026, at 21:00. Some TV listings also label the production year as 2025, which suggests post-production wrapped well before the broadcast date, though the precise timeline isn't fully documented in available sources.
No cast list in the traditional sense applies here — this is a documentary, and the subject himself, Raymond Devos (1922–2006), is the undisputed center of gravity. No box office figures exist, given the film's television premiere format, and no formal awards or critic scores have been published as of this writing. Hard to say if that will change once the film finds a wider audience, but the absence of a review consensus doesn't diminish the project's ambition.
Movie OTT tracks streaming availability across major platforms, and we'll update this page as distribution details emerge for this title.
What makes Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne stand out
Raymond Devos was not a comedian in the Anglo-American sense. He was something closer to a philosopher who happened to work in front of a live audience — a man who could take the word rien (nothing) and spend ten minutes proving it meant everything. That's the core challenge for any documentary about him: how do you capture someone whose genius was entirely live, entirely linguistic, and entirely untranslatable?
Duthuron's answer, it seems, is to let the archive do the talking. Rather than relying on talking-head commentary from critics or contemporaries (at least not as the dominant mode), the film appears to trust the material itself. The rare footage is the argument. Honestly, that's the right call — because watching Devos work is more persuasive than any expert explaining why he matters.
What we can say, based on how the film was positioned by Paris Première, is that the documentary leans into the wordplay and absurdist humor that defined Devos's stage persona. His sketches weren't jokes in the setup-punchline sense; they were sustained logical spirals, where the premise was reasonable and the conclusion was completely insane, and somehow both were true at once. A documentary that captures even a fraction of that energy — the way a single Devos monologue could leave an audience laughing and slightly dizzy — would be worth 80 minutes of anyone's evening. The thing nobody mentions enough about Devos is how disciplined his apparent chaos actually was. Every detour was planned. Duthuron seems to understand this.
Movieott.com editorial team will continue monitoring critical response as reviews surface post-broadcast.
Where to stream Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne online
Streaming access to Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne is currently limited. As noted by JustWatch's French listings, a dedicated streaming release date has not yet been announced in France, meaning on-demand availability is either restricted or not yet formally listed across major platforms. The film's primary broadcast was on Paris Première, and rights for wider digital distribution haven't been publicly confirmed at this stage.
That said, the "Where to Watch" widget at the top of this page reflects the most current platform data we have — if the film has landed on major OTT services since publication, you'll find it listed there. Movie OTT aggregates streaming availability in real time across services, so checking back is always worth it for titles like this one, where the distribution picture is still developing. Keep an eye on Paris Première's own digital platforms as a likely first port of call.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Who directed Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne?
The documentary was directed by Christophe Duthuron, a French filmmaker with a background in arts and cultural documentary programming. The film was produced by Paris Première and premiered as an inédit broadcast on June 20, 2026.
Q: Where can I watch Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne?
As of now, JustWatch reports that no streaming release date has been confirmed in France. The film aired on Paris Première on June 20, 2026 — check the Where to Watch widget at the top of this Movie OTT page for the latest platform availability, as this can change as distribution deals are announced.
Q: How long is Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne?
Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne has a listed runtime of 1 hour and 20 minutes. It's a focused, single-sitting documentary — not a sprawling multi-part series.
Q: Is Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne based on a true story?
Yes — it's a documentary about the real life and career of Raymond Devos (1922–2006), one of France's most celebrated comic performers and stage artists. The film draws on rare archival material to trace his biography and artistic legacy.
Q: What is the documentary Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne about?
Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne is a portrait of French comic legend Raymond Devos, built around rare archival footage. It focuses on his wordplay, absurdist humor, and decades-long stage career, and was directed by Christophe Duthuron for Paris Première.
Who should watch Raymond Devos : il était une foi... la mienne
If you've ever watched a Raymond Devos sketch and felt that particular sensation — somewhere between laughter and mild existential vertigo — this documentary is made for you. It's also a strong entry point for anyone who hasn't encountered his work yet, given the rare archival material Duthuron has assembled. French-language documentary fans, lovers of literary comedy, and anyone curious about the tradition of one-man show performance in France will find something worth their 80 minutes here. Not a casual watch, maybe. But a rewarding one. For ongoing updates on availability, Movie OTT remains the place to check.
