Le Complot (1973)
Directed by René Gainville

Film Review

The 1970s saw the release of several important films in France dealing with the grim reality of the Algerian War and its bitter aftermath. René Vautier's Avoir 20 ans dans les Aurès (1972), Yves Boisset's R.A.S. (1973) and Laurent Heynemann's La Question (1977) deal with the war itself and were highly controversial in their presentation of the failings of the French government and military during the conflict.  Le Complot is no less provocative but it concerns itself with what took place after the signing of the Évian Accords which made Algerian Independence a certainty in 1962 - an attempt by the OAS (Organisation de l'Armée secrète), a paramilitary group of rightwing dissidents, to provoke a civil war in France and ensure that Algeria remained a French territory.  There was even a plot to assassinate President de Gaulle, and this provided the inspiration for Frederick Forsyth's novel The Day of the Jackal and its subsequent screen adaptation.

What is most surprising about Le Complot is how even-handed it is.  It doesn't condemn the actions of the OAS, even though the many atrocities the organisation committed over the course of its brief history are well documented.  In moral terms, there appears to be little to distinguish the OAS's leaders - who include military officers with impeccable careers behind them - and the senior staff in the police and security forces who are tasked with thwarting their final campaign of terror.  It is a war of nerves, fought by men of courage and honour who are equally committed to their cause.  It just so happens that one side is on the wrong side of history and must inevitably fail.  It is possible to believe sincerely in a cause but at the same time be utterly wrong - this is the film's obvious subtext, and one which could just as equally apply to France's diabolical handling of the Algerian situation as to the misguided activities of the OAS.

In a career that was pretty well undistinguished - his only other notable films are Le Démoniaque (1968) and Alyse et Chloé (1970) - René Gainville shows surprising deftness in his direction of Le Complot.  His sober approach allows the film to play as an intelligent commentary on the divided loyalties to which the military, police and security services were all prone at this crucial moment in French history, rather than just another sensationalist thriller.  Gainville's pared back mise-en-scène gives the film an oppressive, claustrophobic feel and stylistically the film lies somewhere between the coldly realist films that Costa-Gravas and Jean-Pierre Melville were making around this time.

The few action sequences the film offers are authentically staged and bring sporadic bursts of grittiness that make a striking counterpoint to the controlled battle of wills between an iron-willed police chief played by Michel Bouquet and his OAS counterpart, Jean Rochefort.  The most memorable scene in the film is a nail biting stand-off between a tough Michel Duchaussoy and even tougher Raymond Pellegrin.  Needless to say, all of these great actors acquit themselves with performances that are frighteningly convincing and never less than gripping.  The supporting actors (Daniel Ceccaldi, Maurice Biraud, Marina Vlady, Robert Castel) also deserve praise for making this such a compelling drama.

Does Le Complot paint too rosy a picture of the OAS?  From this distance in time, it is hard to judge but compared with today's brand of terrorists, who seem to revel in mass slaughter whilst pursuing objectives that have not the remotest chance of coming to pass, the OAS at least had some rational basis for its existence and activities, loathsome though these undoubtedly are.  Some will judge the film for being too generous in its portrayal of the OAS, but it is worth remembering that no player in the Algerian War came out of it with unalloyed glory.  The French government, the military, the Algerian National Liberation Front (FLN) and the OAS all had the blood of innocents on their hands and reasons to hang their heads in shame once the conflict had been laid to rest.  Le Complot's overriding virtue is that, instead of simplifying the issue and painting one side white and the other black, it leaves us with a sense of how hopelessly muddled the situation was, with honourable men duped by their conscience into sanctioning the most appalling acts - all in the name of patriotism.

Film Synopsis

In March 1962, the French government has signed a treaty with Algeria that will allow the latter country to gain its independence.  Not everyone is happy with this outcome.  The French dissident paramilitary organisation OAS isn't yet ready to give up the fight and is planning another campaign of terror to win over public opinion and ensure that Algeria remains part of France.  When his immediate superior is arrested, a decorated military officer Dominique Clavet takes command of an OAS commando unit and prepares a robbery to raise the money needed for his cause.   An arms depot is then raided to equip the unit with the necessary armaments.  By now the French secret service has got wind of the OAS's planned offensive and police superintendent Lelong begins his investigation to unmask the high-ranking individuals who are behind the recent upsurge in OAS activity.  Lelong is as committed to his cause as Clavet is to his, but already one of these two men is on the wrong side of history and doomed to fail...