By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 2.75
Director: Xavier Beauvois
Starring: Antoine Chappey | Bruce Myers | Jacques Perrin | Jalil Lespert | Jean Lespert | Nathalie Baye | Patrick Chauvel | Roschdy Zem
Country: france
Year: 2007
Running time: 110
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0431979/
Hilary says: “Nathalie Baye (VENUS BEAUTY INSTITUTE, etc.) stars in this glacially-paced French neo-noir.
“Baye plays a veteran police officer returning to the detective squad following some personal drama. One of the squad’s new recruits, Antoine (Jalil Lespert), anxiously awaits his first investigation, having requested a Paris posting so as to escape from the ennui of the provinces.
“When a man is found beaten and drowned in the Seine, Antoine starts his first investigation, but trouble follows for everyone.
“Le yawn; 2 cats”
Bruce says: “It’s 1995: a London police Superintendent searches for a lost child shortly after having an abortion. She bravely struggles to keep her emotions separated from her professional life. The BBC episode entitled PRIME SUSPECT 4: THE LOST CHILD stars Helen Mirren as Superintendent Jane Tennison. Fast forward a decade later to France: Nathalie Baye (THE MAN WHO LOVED WOMEN, THE FLOWER OF EVIL, CATCH ME IF YOU CAN, AND THE BAND PLAYED ON, and THE RETURN OF MARTIN GUERRE) stars as Commandant Caroline Vaudieu, a recovering alcoholic who has struggled for years to overcome the loss of her young son. When she returns to the police force after a two year hiatus in rehab, a young rookie is assigned to her unit. Lieutenant Antoine Derouère (Jalil Lespert) is the young detective who would be just about the age of her
son had he lived. Derouère triggers Caroline’s maternal instincts.
“Initially, the focus of LE PETIT LIEUTENANT is on Derouère and the film starts with his graduation from the police academy. His parents and brother (the actors playing his father and brother are actually his father and – I suspect – his brother in real life) attend the ceremony but his wife is notably absent. Derouère opts for an assignment in Paris, contrary to the resolution he and his wife have agreed upon. The camera follows Derouère to Paris for his first day on the job and his introduction to the totally male staff at his precinct. It isn’t until the following day that we meet Caroline Vaudieu and the film begins a subtle shift to her story rather than the lieutenant’s.
“LE PETIT LIEUTENANT captures the humdrum life of the policemen who must sit around and wait for the next crime and next assignment, hopefully one of the more exciting, less routine tasks involved in tracking down a thief or killer. To manage Derouère’s expectations, Caroline admits to Derouère that she has had only one or two stellar cases in her entire career. A subtext of racism in the police force is triggered by the presence of Solo (Roschdy Zem), a lone Moroccan in the otherwise
totally French unit.
“When a Polish immigrant is found beaten and drowned in a nearby canal, Caroline’s team is put in charge. Soon thereafter, an Englishman is beaten and robbed. The crimes appear related. A homeless Polish man provides clues that lead to two Russian thugs who have extensive prison records in their native land. Like the PRIME SUSPECT series, LE PETIT LIEUTENANT is a police procedural that strips the glamour and romance out of detective work, highlights the dull routine tasks involved in catching perpetrators, and illustrates how errors in judgment and foolish risks hasten disaster.
“Nathalie Baye and Jalil Lespert are superb, backed up by an extraordinarily proficient cast. The script is well written and the camerawork is excellent. For Jane Tennison fans, however, it is nearly impossible to escape the déjà vu. 3.5 cats”