French films

Les Chiens (1979) - film review

  Alain Jessua Thriller / Dramastars 3
Les Chiens poster
Summary
A young doctor, Henri Ferret, moves to a small provincial town and is immediately struck by the mood of fear that pervades the area.  A number of his clients has been viciously assaulted, and their reaction is to join the increasing number of people who have acquired guard dogs to protect them.  The one man who most benefits from this trend is Morel, the owner of the town’s dog kennels.  When the mayor, Boursault, tries to take action against Morel, he himself becomes the victim of the rising tide of aggression.  Concerned with the way the town is heading, Ferret decides to act…
Review
Les Chiens photo
Les Chiens comes close to being an effective moral tale that shows the ease with which an apparently ordinary community can be transformed into a neo-fascist colony.  Unfortunately, its over-the-top melodrama and directorial excesses give it a touch of the absurd, weakening its serious political messages.  Fanny Ardant makes her screen début in this film in a minor supporting role.  She would subsequently star alongside Gérard Depardieu in Francois Truffaut’s La femme d’à coté (1981).

© James Travers 2004

Write a review for this film...
User Comments

Useful links


Related links




To buy Les Chiens:
      

For the latest DVDs and books on French cinema...

Home Discover France Write to us Guest book Terms of use DVD Shop

Copyright © filmsdefrance.com 1998-2012