Themes
I don't know if there were any parts of this film to be taken seriously (always tough to tell with Euro films), but I saw this film as a depiction of the inadequacies of male love at various stages of a man's life, and the frustrations that come with it.
Tete the boy is too young to distinguish maternal and sexual attraction. He shies away from competition, preferring the security of his mother's breasts, and is thus called ball-less (= not a man) by his father. Seeking undivided love, he abandons his mother in pursuit of the Frenchman's wife, where yet again he runs into competition. He cannot sing like Miquel nor fart like the Frenchman, but at the finale of the film, he musters the courage to climb the human tower in an attempt to impress the wife. In doing so, he learns the joys of competing and enters early manhood.
Miquel the adolescent cannot distinguish love from lust, and though he is healthy and youthful, he is naive and lacks the wisdom of a man. The only things he does well is to sing and make passionate love.
The husband (Frenchman) is wise and witty, loves his wife, has an emotional connection with her, but is no longer able to satisfy her physically.
[Other: Stallone -the tough guy who prefers to pursue his hobby rather than chase after women- has his life literally consumed by it.]
So: when you're little you just want undivided love and security but quickly learn this can never be attained, when you're young you can't wait to grow up; when you're older you have no idea how to channel the lust; when you're finally old enough to deserve the woman you love, your body betrays you.
What did you see in this film? (Other than Mathilda May's perfect pair)