A female photographer and news reporter is both saddened and shocked to learn that her estranged husband died during a business trip. The Antwerp police is convinced it's got all the answers : the said husband fell into the water while drunk as a skunk, and drowned. Consequently the file is closed, while the body of the deceased is released for burial. As time goes by, the widow begins to discover ever more sinister anomalies and question marks...
In the USA, the 1970's were a golden decade for more or less paranoid movies about government plots, malfeasance and political conspiracies. "Le point de mire" is proof positive that the genre existed in Europe too. It's a respectable entry into the genre, which evokes a growing sense of betrayal and despair : it is good at suggesting the evil hiding behind the familiar façade of everyday life. It's a pity that the dead husband remains a bit of a riddle, especially since he seemed quite a promising character. I found it hard to distinguish between the things he had done and discovered, versus the things other people thought/said/pretended he had done and discovered. But perhaps it's just me.
Annie Girardot gives a fine performance as a clever, competent, modern woman who, for once, runs into opponents she cannot understand or beat. (Still, her character lost a lot of sympathy points by mistreating an inoffensive house plant. Boo ! Justice and mercy for our green friends !) Jacques Dutronc is equally good, creating one of the more memorably disquieting villains of French cinema. Here is a neighbour you definitely do not want to meet...
In the USA, the 1970's were a golden decade for more or less paranoid movies about government plots, malfeasance and political conspiracies. "Le point de mire" is proof positive that the genre existed in Europe too. It's a respectable entry into the genre, which evokes a growing sense of betrayal and despair : it is good at suggesting the evil hiding behind the familiar façade of everyday life. It's a pity that the dead husband remains a bit of a riddle, especially since he seemed quite a promising character. I found it hard to distinguish between the things he had done and discovered, versus the things other people thought/said/pretended he had done and discovered. But perhaps it's just me.
Annie Girardot gives a fine performance as a clever, competent, modern woman who, for once, runs into opponents she cannot understand or beat. (Still, her character lost a lot of sympathy points by mistreating an inoffensive house plant. Boo ! Justice and mercy for our green friends !) Jacques Dutronc is equally good, creating one of the more memorably disquieting villains of French cinema. Here is a neighbour you definitely do not want to meet...