ONE EVENING, STRETCHED OUT ON MY NEW BED, I ZONED IN FRONT OF MY TELEVISION IN SEARCH OF A PROGRAM THAT WOULD ALLOW ME TO FALL ASLEEP SERENELY. I STUMBLED ACROSS A PARIS PREMIÈRE CINÉ-CLUB EVENING, BACK IN THE DAYS WHEN THIS CHANNEL HAD A PROGRAM DIRECTOR WITH A BRAIN. THE FOLLOWING FILM IS FAR FROM BEING A RARITY, AN UNKNOWN OR AN INVISIBLE. I DON'T PRETEND TO TEACH YOU ANYTHING, AS I CONSIDER YOU ALL TO HAVE, AT THE VERY LEAST, A BACCALAUREATE+12, AS WELL AS A QE WORTHY OF DICKENS. BUT IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT YET, THEN STOP WHATEVER YOU'RE DOING AND DISCOVER BEING THERE. BEING THERE IS QUITE SIMPLY PETER SELLERS' BEST FILM AND THAT OF HIS DIRECTOR HAL ASHBY. YET SELLERS SHOT WITH BLAKE EDWARDS AND LIT UP OUR CHILDHOOD. HE PLAYED WITH KUBRICK (NOT STANLEY'S BEST IDEA, BY THE WAY), BUT NOTHING COMES CLOSE TO THE PERFECTION OF THIS STORY, WHICH FOLLOWS ITS IDEA TO THE END. AND IT'S SO RARE TO FIND WORKS THAT TAKE AN IDEA, MAKE IT BLOSSOM AND SEE IT THROUGH TO ITS LOGICAL CONCLUSION. BEING THERE IS ONE OF THE RARE FILMS TO DO JUST THAT, AND TO SUCCEED. THAT'S WHY YOU NEED TO SEE IT, OR SEE IT AGAIN.