Film Review
Convincingly presented as an authentic espionage case, and in a way that
is both chilling and darkly comedic,
Le Dossier 51 stands apart as
one of director Michel Deville's most usual cinematic offerings. Deville
began his filmmaking career in the 1950s, and after a brief flirtation with
the policier genre, he found his metier with a series of light but immensely
popular romantic comedies, including
Ce soir ou jamais (1960) and
L'Appartement des filles
(1963). By the 1970s, he had moved onto somewhat darker and more serious
territory, bringing a distinctly caustic and sombre edge to his increasingly
varied oeuvre.
With
Le Dossier 51, Deville takes his fascination for the subjective
camera to its limit and constructs a film narrative entirely from the perspective
of a foreign agency eavesdropping on an unsuspecting French diplomat, in
the hope of acquiring some incriminating evidence with which to blackmail
him into working for them. The film consists mostly of bugged conversations
and images from hidden cameras, an odd montage that works far better than
you might expect.
It's a brave attempt at something new, and whilst the end result isn't entirely
successful, Deville manages to make the most of this unconventional approach,
taking as his starting point a spy novel by Gilles Perrault. The film
may not have been as commercially succesful as the director's earlier, more
accessible films, but it found favour with many critics and was honoured
with the Prix Méliès in 1978, It also picked up two Césars
in the same year, for its screenplay and editing.
One of the most unsettling aspects of
Le Dossier 51 is the way in
which the human beings it presents are reduced to mere objects. It
is as if they were being analysed not by a foreign power, but by an alien
culture on a distant planet. It's a demonstration of how society is
being dehumanised by technology, individuals represented not as autonomous
beings but as nameless commodities, mere puppets to be exploited and manipulated
by those who have power over them.
This is repeatedly emphasised throughout the film by contrasting the raw
emotions and capricious nature of the subjects under investigation (a diplomat
and his entourage) with the clinical coldness of the agents who are impassively
engaged in dissecting their victim's private life. The latter elicit
not the slightest shred of humanity or emotion - they might just as well
be a bank of heartless computers, like those which are depicted so ominously
in the film's opening sequence.
The sheer unusualness of
Le Dossier 51 makes it interesting, particularly
to devotees of Deville's increasingly unpredictable work, but it is hardly
likely to endear itself to the mainstream. The film's disjointed patchwork
narrative and oppressively subjective approach make for an uncomfortable
viewing experience. Compelling it may not be, but it certainly has
impact, and you are left more anxious than ever over how technology can be
misapplied to the detriment of society by those seeking power and influence
over us.
© James Travers 2019
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Next Michel Deville film:
Eaux profondes (1981)
Film Synopsis
A mysterious foreign power has set its sights on recruiting Dominique Auphal,
a prominent French diplomat, as an agent. In order to put leverage
on him to get him to comply, the security service of this foreign power embarks
on a massive campaign of information gathering targeted at him. Using
the most up to date methods of espionage, a substantial dossier is built
up relating to Auphal's personal and professional life, a dossier that threatens
to compromise not only its intended victim but also the origanisation he
works for, ODENS, which is actively involved with political exchanges across
Europe. It seems that Auphal, whilst apparently leading a blameless
life, could well prove to be an ideal subject for blackmail...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.