L'Appât (1995)
Directed by Bertrand Tavernier

Crime / Drama
aka: The Bait

Film Review

Abstract picture representing L'Appat (1995)
L'Appât is Bertrand Tavernier's most disturbing film to date - a dark, pessimistic but believable reflection of adolescent disaffection and moral vacuity. By adopting a raw documentary style and encouraging his actors to give naturalistic performances, Tavernier heightens the shock-value inherent in the drama (which is based on a real-life case) to sickening proportions.

None of the three principal characters is evil; on the contrary, they have a sympathetic urbanity, which is underscored by their precarious social position (and excellent portrayal by three very talented actors). Their amoral behaviour is the inevitable consequence of a society where human life is utterly devalued by its “throwaway” portrayal in films, computer games, and other media. How else could the childlike Nathalie sit calmly watching television whilst her two friends casually terminate a life in an adjacent room? They have no idea what they are doing.

This is a grim post-noir portrayal of a world and a generation that have totally lost their way - made cynical by social fragmentation and subsisting on a diet of trashy American crime thrillers.  L'Appât is a difficult film to stomach, mainly because it strikes so near to such an unpalatable truth.
© James Travers 2004
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Next Bertrand Tavernier film:
Capitaine Conan (1996)

Film Synopsis

An adolescent girl, Nathalie, shares a small Parisian apartment with her two friends, Eric and Bruno. None of them has any hope of getting a job but they all have unrealistic aspirations. Nathalie wants to become an actress; Bruno dreams of being a champion boxer; Eric thinks he can make his fortune as a retailer. When Eric's only income disappears, he contrives a scheme which will earn them enough money to start up a business in America. Nathalie will hang out in nightclubs to lure rich businessmen and gain their confidence. When she is invited to their homes, she will let Eric and Bruno in to rob them. The plan starts to go awry immediately when Bruno kills their first victim…
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.


Film Credits

  • Director: Bertrand Tavernier
  • Script: Bertrand Tavernier, Colo Tavernier, Morgan Sportes (novel)
  • Cinematographer: Alain Choquart
  • Music: Philippe Haïm
  • Cast: Marie Gillain (Nathalie), Olivier Sitruk (Eric), Bruno Putzulu (Bruno), Richard Berry (Alain), Philippe Duclos (Antoine), Marie Ravel (Karine), Clotilde Courau (Patricia), Jean-Louis Richard (Innkeeper), Christophe Odent (Laurent), Jean-Paul Comart (Michel), Philippe Héliès (Pierre), Jacky Nercessian (M. Tapiro (Nathalie's boss)), Alain Sarde (Philippe), Daniel Russo (Jean-Pierre), Philippe Torreton (Chief cop), François Berléand (Insp. Durieux), François Levantal (Cop), Thierry Gimenez (Cop), Isabelle Sadoyan (Eric's grandmother), Laurent Arnal (Vincent)
  • Country: France
  • Language: French
  • Support: Color
  • Runtime: 115 min
  • Aka: The Bait ; Fresh Bait

Kafka's tortuous trial of love
sb-img-0
Franz Kafka's letters to his fiancée Felice Bauer not only reveal a soul in torment; they also give us a harrowing self-portrait of a man appalled by his own existence.
The very best French thrillers
sb-img-12
It was American film noir and pulp fiction that kick-started the craze for thrillers in 1950s France and made it one of the most popular and enduring genres.
The very best of the French New Wave
sb-img-14
A wave of fresh talent in the late 1950s, early 1960s brought about a dramatic renaissance in French cinema, placing the auteur at the core of France's 7th art.
The very best of French film comedy
sb-img-7
Thanks to comedy giants such as Louis de Funès, Fernandel, Bourvil and Pierre Richard, French cinema abounds with comedy classics of the first rank.
The best of American film noir
sb-img-9
In the 1940s, the shadowy, skewed visual style of 1920s German expressionism was taken up by directors of American thrillers and psychological dramas, creating that distinctive film noir look.
 

Other things to look at


Copyright © filmsdefrance.com 1998-2024
All rights reserved



All content on this page is protected by copyright