One of the better class of psychological thriller in recent years, Un jeu d'enfants
is a gripping yet quite disturbing tale of obsession and delusion. After
a cleverly ambiguous beginning, it soon becomes clear that the film is being presented
from the distorted perspective of a stressed-out married couple, so that implausible and
irrational events take on a terrifying sense of realism, locking the viewing in a nightmare
world from which there is no escape.
Strong performances from lead actors Karin Viard and Charles Berling lend the story credibility
which it might otherwise lack, whilst the excellent photography contrasts, with great
effect, the banality of everyday life with the chilling horror of mounting paranoia.
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Next Laurent Tuel film: Jean-Philippe (2006)
Film Synopsis
After inheriting a spacious Parisian apartment from a relative, Marianne
Fauvel, a translator, wastes no time moving in with her husband Jacques and
their two young children, Julien and Aude. For a while, it seems to
be the perfect home and the family couldn't be happier. Then, one day,
two strangers present themselves on Marianne's doorstep and politely ask
if they may be admitted. They are an elderly couple who introduce themselves
as Mr and Mrs Worms. It seems that they once lived in the apartment
when they were children and are keen to take one last look over it, because
it holds such happy memories for them both. Naturally, Marianne gives
her consent, but not long after the Worms have gone on their way things suddenly
begin to take a turn for the worse for the Fauvels.
It is as if a curse has suddenly been placed on the unfortunate family.
Marianne is almost arrested for shop-lifting, Jacques attacks one of his
work colleagues and has a nervous breakdown, and their children start to
behave creepily, as if they were possessed. As things go from bad to
worse, Marianne has good reason to believe that the apartment is the cause
of all her problems. It isn't long before she uncovers the terrible
series of events that took place here some years ago and which still leave
their imprint in the fabric of the building. The Fauvels' nightmare
is only just beginning. Far worse is to come...
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.