Film Review
Agatha Christie is enjoying something of a rival in France, if the
recent spate of film adaptations of her novels is anything to go
by. Director Pascal Thomas set the ball rolling (presumably
it was a ball and not a severed head) with his
Mon petit doigt m'a dit...
(2005), an off-the-wall reinterpretation of Christie's
By the pricking of my thumbs.
This was followed by three more adaptations:
L'Heure zéro (2007),
Le Grand alibi (2008) and
Le Crime est notre affaire (2008),
all quality productions that were well-received by cinemagoers and
critics alike. This renewed French craving for mystery and
intrigue, British-style, probably has some way to run. The
francophilic Queen of Crime would have been
très ravie.
Of these four most recent Gallic adaptations of Christie's work,
L'Heure zéro is the one
that is closest in spirit to its source novel and, arguably, the most
entertaining. Whilst it closely adheres to the plot of Christie's
Towards Zero, with
Superintendent Battle renamed Commissaire Bataille (not replaced by
Miss Marple, as in a British TV version made the same year), it is
given a blackly comedic slant which augments rather than detracts from
the intrigue. One of the problems with the original story is that
the murderer is too easily identified - just look for the character
with the cast-iron alibi and you have uncovered the identity of the
killer in a thrice. Presumably mindful of this deficiency, Thomas
and his team of writers succeed in muddying the waters, distracting us
with comic diversions so that, if we
do
guess who the killer is, at least we do not get bored out of our
skulls waiting for him or her to be unmasked.
The characters and the setting are instantly recognisable as
Christie-esque. The story may take place in our own lacklustre
time, but the mood and style instantly evoke the dark, labyrinthine yet
cosily reassuring world of England's most prolific writer of crime
fiction. There is plenty of comedy, but there is always a
sinister dark edge to it. The humour serves as a cunning
trompe l'oeil that masks the sordid
reality and prevents us from seeing the calculating evil that lurks
beneath a semblance of normality. From a distance, the clown and
the mad man are indisinguishable.
As in the best screen adaptations of Christie's work, the film offers
both impressive production values and a superlative ensemble cast that
includes some very well-known actors (after all, as
Hercule Poirot once remarked,
on n'attrape pas les
mouches avec du vinaigre). As the obligatory Christie
super-bitch, Laura Smet goes way, way over the top, but enjoyably so;
François Morel is much more understated but just as funny as
Commissaire Bataille, the cop who uses the most unorthodox means to
eliminate his suspects; and a devil-made-flesh Melvil Poupaud comes
close to out-doing Anthony Perkins in the creepiness stakes. True
aficionados of Agatha Christie will not be disappointed by this mystery
romp, a respectable and highly entertaining adaptation with an
unmistakable Gallic twist.
© James Travers 2010
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Next Pascal Thomas film:
Le Crime est notre affaire (2008)
Film Synopsis
Just what was Guillaume Neuville thinking when he invited his ex-wife
Aude and his latest wife Caroline to his Aunt Camilla's home in
Brittany? Did he really think the two women, one stroppy and
vulgar, the other introverted and refined, would get on? Whatever
Guillaume's motives, and in spite of the soothing Breton seaside air,
the sparks soon begin to fly. But worse is to come, for this will
be no ordinary family reunion. Someone intends to commit the
perfect murder...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.