|
|
Your typical French small town: Louis Cuno (Lucas Belvaux) and his
possessive wheelchair-bound mother (Stéphane Audran) are bullied by the
three richest men in town, Lavoisier (Michel Bouquet), Moraseau (Jean
Topart) and Filiol (Jean-Claude Bouillaud), wannabe land developers who
desparately want the Cunos to sell their house for their own profits - but
Louis and mum simply have no interest in selling. But not only that, they
suspect the town's money to conspire against them, so they intercept their
mail, spy on them, and try to dig up dirt. And Louis frequently keys their
cars and plays little pranks on them - until one such prank kills Filiol.
Soon after that, Morasseau's wife (Josephine Chaplin) dies in a car
accident, while another woman (Caroline Cellier) involved with the local
bigshots disappears without a trace. A detective, inspector Lavardin (Jean
Poiret) arrives in town, and he's quick to figure Filiol's death was
Louis' fault - but goes somewhat easy on him, figuring there's something
bigger at play. And with very unconventional - and often unlawful -
methods, he by and by uncovers more and more skeletons in the town's
collective closet ... Director Claude Chabrol was always best
when he made thrillers and/or murder mysteries that served as a thin veil
for social commentary, pulling back the curtain to show the dark sides of
bourgeoisie - and that's certainly true with Cop Au Vin, a film
that works as both an unconventional murder mystery and bitter satire,
carried by a witty script, a stylish yet subtle enough directorial effort,
and a first rate cast, with Jean Poiret in what's basically only a
secondary role (despite top billing) deserving special mention - no wonder
his character has been spun off into another movie - Inspector Lavardin
- and a TV series - Les Dossiers Secrets de l'Inspecteur Lavardin. Strongly
recommended.
|
|
|