Just Visiting

A French nobleman, Thibault, is about to marry Rosalind when a scheming rival has a witch prepare a potion for him. Tricked into drinking it, Thibault suffers hallucinations and kills his bride-to-be, an act for which he is condemned to death. His loyal servant Andre helps him escape, and a wizard's spell is meant to send the pair briefly back in time so they can undo the tragedy. The spell goes wrong, and instead of a few minutes into the past, Thibault and Andre are hurled roughly eight centuries forward, landing in present-day Chicago. Stranded in a world of cars and computers, they encounter Julia, a descendant of Thibault, who tries to help them find a way home while the two medieval men cause considerable disruption in the modern city.

The film is a Hollywood remake of the 1993 French comedy The Visitors, and Jean-Marie Poiré, who directed that original, returned to direct this English-language version. It is based on the same premise. It sits between the second French installment, The Visitors II: The Corridors of Time, and a later French entry, The Visitors: Bastille Day. The screenplay is credited to John Hughes, Christian Clavier and Poiré. Jean Reno and Christian Clavier reprise their roles as Thibault and Andre, with Christina Applegate playing Rosalind and Julia, and supporting turns from Matt Ross, Tara Reid and Bridgette Wilson-Sampras.

Made for a budget of around 35 million dollars, the film took in roughly 16 million worldwide. Its ratings are mixed but consistent across sources: 5.7 out of 10 on IMDb from about 21,000 votes, 4.8 out of 10 on TMDB from 737 votes, and a critics' score of 5.2 out of 10 from 78 reviews, putting critical and audience reactions fairly close together.