Novelist and poet Michel Houellebecq, one of France's most famous and provocative intellectuals, briefly went missing in 2011, causing the French media to speculate wildly about a possible kidnapping. The writer refuses to talk about his mysterious disappearance to this day. In director Guillaume Nicloux's offbeat documentary-style take on the events, The Kidnapping of Michel houellebecq, Houellebecq gives a performance as himself: a disheveled misanthrope with a particular contempt for contemporary Europe and a fondness for wine and cigarettes. Captured and held for ransom, Houellebecq wins the admiration of his captors - three surprisingly friendly, considerate hoodlums. Points of view on literature, class, race, and even mixed martial arts are discussed with deadpan humor that turns a kidnapping into comedy.