Un été d'enfer (1984)
Directed by Michael Schock

Film Review

In many respects, Un été d'enfer typifies the kind of formulaic film noir thriller that was made in France in the mid 1980s. To distract us from the familiar plot and stereotypical characters (which might well have been lifted from a classic film noir of the 1940s) we are treated to an an excess of visual style and gratuitous violence.  Better directors like Jean-Jacques Beineix and Luc Besson managed to get away with this slight of hand with their films Diva (1981) and Subway (1985), but here the dubious artistry soon wears thin and the failings of the weak script and self-indulgent mise-en-scène are all too grimly apparent.

Probably motivated by a desire to shake off his comedy persona and broaden his repertoire, Thierry Lhermitte took on several serious roles in the 1980s and, as often as not, he proved to be out of his depth and failed to give a convincing performance. After a disappointing turn in Serge Leroy's similar thriller L'Indic (1983), he appears just as miscast in Un été d'enfer. Here he is singularly unsympathetic and unconvincing in the lead role, although this is as much a fault of the script as his limited range as an actor. Lhermitte's co-stars, Véronique Jannot and Daniel Duval are equally ill-served by the script, although Duval at least manages to make his character believable. To be fair, the film does have some inspired moments (the opening sequence and then, near the end of the film, the pin-ball sequence), but these are tragically out-numbered by its tacky indulgences, which include some ad hoc bursts of erotica which would be hard to stomach even in one of the Emmanuelle films. Un été d'enfer is by no means the worst film of its kind but its lack of ambition and originality makes it depressing viewing unless you happen never to have seen a French thriller of the 1980s.

Film Synopsis

After an accident, Philippe Darlan is forced to give up his career as a professional motorcyclist and ends up working for his uncle's private detective agency.  Elisabeth Leroy hires him to find her sister Valérie who went missing three months ago.  Darlan's investigations lead him to a drug ring which is being protected by a crooked police inspector.