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Timeline

Alibi.com (2017) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Release, runtime and language
2017 · 90 mins · French
Starring
Nawell Madani, Nathalie Baye, Philippe Duquesne, Kad Merad, Didier Bourdon, Michèle Laroque

Greg establishes Alibi.com, a company specializing in creating custom alibis for clients, with the help of his associate Augustin and new employee Medhi. They design elaborate stratagems to conceal clients' activities, but Greg's life becomes complicated when he meets Flo, a woman suspicious of dishonesty. His secret profession is threatened when he discovers Flo’s father, Gérard, is also a client. The situation escalates during a meeting with Gérard’s family, forcing Greg to confront the potential exposure of his unusual business.

On this page (4)
  1. 1 Events in order (11)
  2. 2 Timeline questions answered
  3. 3 Movie threads
  4. 4 Every angle

11 events in order · contains spoilers

Alibi.com Timeline: Events in Chronological Order

Every key event of Alibi.com (2017) in order, scene by scene, with when and where it takes place. Use it to untangle flashbacks, time jumps and parallel storylines, to refresh your memory before the sequel or to find the exact scene you are thinking of.

  1. Greg heads Alibi.com

    Grégory Van Huffel, called Greg, is the head of Alibi.com, a service that provides clients with alibis to shield their affairs from their romantic partners. He oversees the growth and operations of the agency as it becomes more successful. This setup establishes the central premise that deception is a business model guiding the plot.

    When
    Before the events
    Where
    Alibi.com headquarters
  2. Greg meets Florence and falls in love

    Greg meets Florence Martin by chance and feels a strong attraction. Florence believes honesty is essential in a relationship, creating tension with Greg’s line of work. Despite this, Greg keeps his job a secret, presenting himself as a steward.

    When
    Early in their relationship
  3. Trip to the parents' country house reveals a client

    During a trip to their parents' country house, Greg discovers that Florence's father, Gérard, is one of his Alibi.com customers. The discovery ties Greg’s professional world to his personal life in a troubling way. The revelation foreshadows the intertwining of romance and deception that follows.

    Where
    Parents' country house
  4. Marlène suspects the trip; Gérard in Cannes

    Florence's mother Marlène suspects her husband Gerard is away on business. In parallel, Gérard meets Cynthia in a hotel in Cannes, introducing a separate thread where alibis and secrets intersect with the family. The Cannes thread begins to pull the plot into its broader web of deception.

    Where
    Hotel in Cannes
  5. Florence and Marlène check into Cannes and meet Gérard

    Florence and her mother check into the Cannes hotel, where they encounter Gérard. The meeting heightens the stakes for everyone involved and deepens the entanglement between the family and the alibi service. The convergence of these characters amplifies the secrets at play.

    Where
    Cannes hotel
  6. An emergency prompts a call to Greg

    In an emergency, Gérard contacts Greg for help. The request is clear: Greg must provide Gérard with an alibi to cover his whereabouts. This moment cements Greg’s role as the go-between for the deception and intensifies the pressure on him.

  7. Greg fabricates a Tanzanian trip to build the alibi

    To supply Gérard's alibi, Greg tells Florence that he is traveling to Tanzania, crafting a believable story. The fabrication requires him to avoid any contact with Florence, adding personal strain to the deception. The lie becomes a cornerstone of the alibi operation.

    When
    During the alibi setup
    Where
    Travel to Tanzania
  8. The lie strains Greg and Florence’s relationship

    The need to maintain the deceit creates growing tension in Greg and Florence’s relationship. Greg’s concealment of his actual job fosters mistrust, even as their romance persists. The emotional cost of the lie becomes increasingly apparent.

  9. Gérard's alibi is provided through Greg’s deception

    Greg successfully uses the Tanzania alibi to shield Gérard’s whereabouts. The successful construction of the alibi reinforces the unethical path they’ve chosen. The short-term victory comes with a looming moral consequence.

  10. Gérard and Greg become repentant sinners

    At the end, Gérard and Greg are described as repentant sinners, indicating they feel remorse for their deception. This moral reckoning marks a turning point in their personal and professional lives. The act of repentance reframes the story’s conclusion around guilt and reconciliation.

  11. Cynthia publishes Alibi.com's customer list

    Cynthia publishes Alibi.com's customer list on the Internet, making the confidential clients public. The move exposes the vulnerabilities of the alibi business and strains the ethics of secrecy. The online leak acts as a dramatic catalyst that reshapes the aftermath of the plot.

    Where
    Internet

Last updated: March 24, 2026 at 19:59

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Timeline questions answered

Alibi.com Timeline Explained: Your Questions Answered

When does it happen, and why in that order? The questions people ask about the chronology of Alibi.com (2017): time jumps, flashbacks, cause and effect between scenes and the correct order of events, each answered with spoilers.

Q1

Why does Greg lie to Florence about his job?

Greg lies to Florence about working as a steward because he knows she values absolute honesty in relationships. He hopes that by concealing his real profession, he can build a connection with her without his alibi business getting in the way. However, this initial deception sets up the central conflict of the movie, as his secret eventually threatens to destroy the very relationship he's trying to protect.

Foreshadowing: Early in their relationship, Greg presents himself as a steward, planting the seed for the complicated web of lies that follows.

  • greg
  • florence
  • lies
  • job
  • honesty
  • steward
Q2

How does Greg meet Florence?

Greg meets Florence Martin by chance early in the film. She's a lawyer who strongly believes in honesty as the foundation of trust, which creates immediate tension with Greg's line of work. Despite knowing their values clash, Greg is drawn to her and decides to pursue the relationship while hiding his true profession.

  • greg
  • florence
  • meet
  • lawyer
  • romance
Q3

Why is it problematic that Gérard is an Alibi.com client?

It's problematic because Gérard is Florence's father, meaning Greg's professional world has now directly intersected with his personal life. When Greg discovers during a trip to the parents' country house that Gérard uses his alibi service to hide his affair, Greg is trapped between maintaining client confidentiality and protecting his relationship with Florence. This creates an impossible situation where his business ethics and romantic interests directly conflict.

Foreshadowing: The discovery happens during a seemingly innocent family visit, making the revelation more shocking.

  • gerard
  • alibi client
  • florence
  • father
  • secret affair
Q4

Why does Greg tell Florence he's traveling to Tanzania?

Greg fabricates the Tanzania trip to provide Gérard with a solid alibi while avoiding any chance of running into Florence. When Gérard calls Greg in an emergency needing an alibi, Greg must maintain his cover story. Telling Florence he was traveling to Tanzania allowed him to explain his unavailability while protecting Gérard's secret, but it further strained his relationship by adding another lie on top of his existing deception about his job.

Foreshadowing: The emergency call from Gérard forces Greg to choose between his client and his relationship, setting the Tanzania lie in motion.

  • tanzania
  • alibi
  • emergency
  • gerard
  • lie
Q5

What happens when everyone ends up at the same Cannes hotel?

All the storylines converge at the Cannes hotel, creating a tense game of near-misses and awkward encounters. Florence and her mother Marlène check into the hotel where Gérard is secretly meeting his mistress Cynthia. Greg, trying to avoid any contact with Florence while maintaining the Tanzania cover story, must navigate this crowded situation without getting caught. The coincidence amplifies the comedic tension as everyone tries to keep their secrets hidden while literally being in the same place.

Foreshadowing: The parallel storylines of Gérard meeting Cynthia in Cannes and Florence's family trip were set up as separate threads that were always destined to collide.

  • cannes
  • hotel
  • near miss
  • family
  • convergence
Q6

What does Cynthia do at the end of the movie?

Cynthia makes a bold, public move by publishing Alibi.com's confidential customer list on the Internet. This act exposes all the clients who used the alibi service, shattering the secrecy that was the foundation of the business. The revelation serves as the climax where the consequences of deception catch up with everyone, forcing characters to face the reality that secrets cannot be kept forever.

  • cynthia
  • customer list
  • exposed
  • internet
  • scandal
Q7

Does Greg end up with Florence despite his lies?

Yes, the movie ends with a happy resolution where Greg and Florence remain together. Both Greg and Gérard become 'repentant sinners' who confront their missteps and seek redemption. Greg presumably comes clean about his real profession, and Florence, understanding his remorse, chooses to forgive him. The story concludes on a positive note about accountability and the messy, human process of rebuilding trust after deception.

Foreshadowing: The ending emphasizes reconciliation and the characters' willingness to face the truth rather than continue living behind lies.

  • greg
  • florence
  • ending
  • together
  • forgiveness
  • redemption
Q8

How does Alibi.com work as a business?

Alibi.com is a service that creates custom alibis for clients who want to hide romantic affairs from their partners. Greg and his associates design elaborate schemes and cover stories to conceal where clients actually are. The business thrives on discretion, but the movie explores the moral consequences when the protagonist himself becomes entangled in the web of lies he creates for others.

  • alibi service
  • business
  • clients
  • deception
  • discretion
Q9

Why does Gérard call Greg for help during an emergency?

Gérard contacts Greg for help because he's caught in a situation that requires an immediate alibi. This emergency forces Greg to step in and fabricate a cover story, which is what leads Greg to invent the Tanzania trip. The exact nature of the emergency isn't specified in detail, but it's serious enough that Gérard can't handle it alone and needs professional alibi assistance.

  • gerard
  • emergency
  • call
  • help
  • alibi

Movie threads

More Movies Like Alibi.com, by Mood & Story

Curated lists built around what makes Alibi.com tick: the same mood, the same kind of story or the same emotional payoff. Each list explains why these movies belong together.

Movies about tangled lies and comedic deceit like Alibi.com

Fast-paced comedies where a simple lie spirals into a chaotic, hilarious mess. If you liked the escalating farce and awkward misunderstandings in Alibi.com, you'll enjoy these movies where a simple lie spirals out of control. This collection features similar fast-paced comedies centered on deception, secret identities, and the hilarious chaos of trying to keep up a charade.

  • farcical
  • awkward
  • playful
  • misunderstandings
  • escalating
  • comedic tension
  • Tone: light, playful, farcical
  • Pacing: fast, escalating
Why these movies?

The story pattern: The core pattern is a character, often well-intentioned, who creates a false identity or tells a significant lie. This deception immediately complicates their life, especially their romantic or family relationships. The plot is driven by a series of escalating coincidences and close calls, forcing the protagonist into ever more ridiculous situations to prevent exposure. The resolution typically involves a cathartic, public reveal followed by forgiveness and a happy ending.

Why they belong together: These movies are grouped by their shared engine of comedic tension: the constant, low-stakes threat of a secret being revealed. They share a fast pacing to keep the farce moving, a light tone that ensures the stakes feel relational rather than dire, and a focus on the awkward, playful humor that arises from social deception. The emotional journey is one of mounting pressure and eventual, satisfying release.

Romantic farce comedies with a secret like Alibi.com

Lighthearted romantic comedies where a big secret jeopardizes a new relationship. Fans of the romantic dilemma and secret-keeping in Alibi.com will love these similar movies. This thread gathers lighthearted rom-coms where a character's hidden life or profession creates a cascade of funny, awkward situations that threaten a budding romance before a happy resolution.

  • romantic
  • farcical
  • lighthearted
  • secret-keeping
  • awkward dates
  • double life
  • Tone: light, romantic, comedic
  • Pacing: fast, comedic timing
Why these movies?

The story pattern: The story follows a protagonist who meets someone new and promising. Early on, they make a choice to conceal a key aspect of themselves, often fearing judgment. As the romance blossoms, the secret becomes harder to maintain, especially when their worlds collide in unexpected ways (e.g., the love interest's parent being a client). The second act is a series of comedic set-pieces where the protagonist narrowly avoids exposure. The third act culminates in the secret being revealed, leading to a crisis and a final, heartfelt reconciliation that reaffirms the connection.

Why they belong together: This thread connects movies through a specific romantic-comedic structure: the 'secret-as-obstacle.' They share a light emotional weight, ensuring the drama is playful rather than painful. The pacing is brisk to maintain comedic momentum, and the tone is consistently warm and humorous, even during moments of tension. The focus is on the relational stakes and the humor derived from the protagonist's increasingly desperate attempts to juggle their dual lives.

Every angle

Alibi.com (2017) Explained: Plot, Timeline & Characters

Everything about Alibi.com in one place: what happens in the plot summary, the timeline in chronological order, the characters and meaning and a spoiler-free summary. What's After the Movie adds the cast, box office and post-credit scenes.

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