Crime is Mine, The

Stars: Nadia Tereskiewicz, Rebecca Marder, Fabrice Luchini, Isabelle Huppert, Dany Boon, Andre Dussollier, Myriam Boyer, Edouard Sulpice, Evelyne Buyle

Director: Francois Ozon

A divertissement from the multi-talented director Ozon, set in 1935 where unemployed actress Madeleine (Tereskiewicz) and unemployed lawyer Pauline (Varder) are in danger of eviction from their cluttered flat in Paris, owing 400,000 francs to long-suffering landlady Mme Jus (Boyer).

I feel I'm waiting for a train that will never leave,' wails Madeleine. She's in love with Andre (Sulpice), the son of a millionaire rubber dealer (Dussollier), while her latently lesbian flatmate seems even less likely to find a lover than the rent.

All this changes when Madeleine is invited to audition for a theatrical role by a producer who has other ideas in his mind and more arms than an octopus. Fleeing back to her poky flat, she and Pauline are staggered to learn that the pawing producer has been found dead.

After the authorities initially suspect man-about-town Fernand (Boon), Pauline is astounded when Madeleine confesses to the crime. On the grounds that her friend was defending her honour, Pauline takes the case, scripting Madeleine's evidence in advance. Madeleine bats her eyelashes and gets acquitted, acquiring a notoriety that rockets her to stardom, when an unexpected spanner (Huppert) is thrown in the works.

Basically a Gallic farce, the film starts sparklingly well, but bogs down a bit after a while, its strenuous attempts at humour becoming a little wearing. Even so, a good many smiles ensue and performances are extrovert-plus in the Grand Guignol tradition.

David Quinlan

France 2023. UK Distributor: . Colour (unspecified).
101 minutes. Widescreen. UK certificate: 12A.

Guidance ratings (out of 3): Sex/nudity 1, Violence/Horror 0, Drugs 0, Swearing 1.

Review date: 10 Oct 2024