What's in a Name
A seemingly simple baby-name announcement turns a Paris dinner into a sharply funny reckoning with family prejudice, rivalry, and secrets.
Overview
A dinner party spirals into chaos as a name choice ignites old rivalries and hidden tensions.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- None
- witty
- awkward
- sardonic
- lazy sunday
- group movie night
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film an enjoyable, well-acted French comedy-drama whose lively verbal confrontations expose deeper family tensions, though its theatrical formula can feel familiar.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The Paris apartment dinner becomes an increasingly tense arena as the guests argue over the unborn child's proposed name.
The argument over Vincent and Anna's chosen name unearths old rivalries and unspoken issues among the guests.
The name Adolphe provokes immediate judgments and reveals the characters' assumptions about history, politics, and one another.
The film remains centered on dinner-table exchanges that grow sharper and more emotionally revealing as no consensus is reached.
Films like What's in a Name, and why
Carnage
shared dinner-party setting, escalating social conflict, witty ensemble banter, and buried interpersonal resentments
The Dinner Game
shared claustrophobic domestic comedy, verbal sparring, class tension, and emotional revelations among longtime acquaintances
The Intouchables
shared French ensemble comedy, family friction, conversational humor, and prejudice exposed through a social gathering
Movie Details
- Directors
- Alexandre de La Patellière, Matthieu Delaporte
- Release Date
- 2012-04-25
- Runtime
- 110 min
- Rating
- 7.3 / 10 (1826)
Cast
- Patrick Bruel
- Valérie Benguigui
- Charles Berling
- Guillaume de Tonquédec
- Judith El Zein
- Françoise Fabian
- Yaniss Lespert
- Miren Pradier
- Alexis Leprisé
- Juliette Levant
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- OVID
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is What's in a Name about?
- A seemingly simple baby-name announcement turns a Paris dinner into a sharply funny reckoning with family prejudice, rivalry, and secrets.
- What is What's in a Name like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of What's in a Name as brisk, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is What's in a Name violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in What's in a Name.
- What did critics think of What's in a Name?
- Critics broadly found the film an enjoyable, well-acted French comedy-drama whose lively verbal confrontations expose deeper family tensions, though its theatrical formula can feel familiar.
- Which films are like What's in a Name?
- Films with a similar feel include Carnage, The Dinner Game, and The Intouchables.
- How long is What's in a Name?
- What's in a Name runs 110 minutes.
- Where can I watch What's in a Name?
- In United States, What's in a Name streams on OVID.
