Il était une fois un flic (1971)

Il était une fois un flic is a French comedy thriller film first released in 1971, directed by Georges Lautner.  The film is based on a novel by Richard Caron and stars Michel Constantin, Michael Lonsdale, Daniel Ivernel, Mireille Darc and Venantino Venantini.  It has also been released under the title: Flic Story.  Our overall rating for this film is: good.


When a drugs dealer is murdered in Nice, the French police see an opportunity to infiltrate and break up a notorious drugs trafficking ring.  Commissaire Campana agrees to impersonate the dead man’s brother, although it means “adopting” Christine, a police agent, as his wife, and her infant son as his own.  A confirmed bachelor, Campana has some difficulty adapting to his new lifestyle as a family man, but he soon has greater concerns to deal with.  Whilst trying to win over the confidence of drugs supremo Pascal Manoni, he is hassled by the local police, who are unaware of his real identity and are convinced he is implicated in a series of gangland killings…

Once again, director Georges Lautner turns his hand to the genre for which he is best known, the comedy thriller.  Skilfully blending farce and tough action thriller, this particular Lautner offering is both entertaining and an effective parody of the American gangster films of the period.  What makes this film particularly memorable is the pairing of Michel Constantin and Mireille Darc, with both actors bringing sensitivity, depth and more than a touch of humanity to what could easily have been a pretty empty piece of cinematic diversion.   In one of his earliest screenplays, writer Francis Veber furnishes the film with his unique brand of tongue-in-cheek wit and some hilarious comic situations.

© James Travers 2006

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