Der Schlachter

If Chabrol has any claim to be the French Hitchcock then it is surely based on this, his best film. Starring his wife Stephane Audran it is set in a French village, which helps give a profound sense of isolation to the terrible events which take place there. As with all great thrillers the fear comes through the gradual realisation of what is really happening, rather than the continuous portrayal of graphically violent acts. The sense of evil in the film is palpable. Unmissable!

Who died yesterday or yesterday yesterday, actually. And one of the best part also of Stéphane Audran [with LA FEMME INFIDÈLE [also directed by Claude Chabrol - France 1968]... I totally agree with the commentaries displayed here, especially with the first one written in 1999 from Houston, if I remember well... Jean Yanne was a popular and successful director of comedies but, well directed as he is there by Chabrol, he was a high-class comedian. This part, if he had done only this one, would be good enough for having him. remembered. This original French version of the JACK THE RIPPER theme (though no prostitute is involved so far) is one of the most original of the history of movies from the beginning till today. LE BOUCHER has not at all the "baroque" aesthetic and "crescendo" dramatic aspect of the masterpieces of British Horror movies directed by Robert S. Baker and Monty N. Berman (1958) or James Hill or Peter Sasdy or even by Sir Alfred in FRENZY... but it is a full continent in itself - as well as, though in a totally different way, LES NOCES ROUGES or NADA by the same director. Chabrol is, in fact, one of the best directors of French cinema from the 60's to the 70's : after it is decreasing level after 1975 but sometimes going well again (LA CÉRÉMONIE)...

In the village of Tremolat, Périgord, the lonely headmistress Helene Daville (Stéphane Audran) befriends the local butcher Paul Thomas (Jean Yanne), who has a trauma of war, in the wedding party of her colleague Leon Hamel (Mario Beccara). In spite of their friendship, they do not become lovers since Helene is still recovering from the disillusion of her last relationship. In Paul's birthday, Helene gives a lighter to him as a gift. During the excursion with her class to a cave in the woods, Helene finds the last victim of a serial killer that is stabbing young women in the area. She realizes that the woman is Leon's wife and she finds Paul's lighter in the crime scene but she hides the evidence from the police. When Paul visits her, she discovers that he still has the lighter and she feels relieved. However, when Paul paints the ceiling of her house, she makes a discovery that affects her sense of security.

The unknown gem "Le Boucher" is a dark, intriguing and suspenseful love story by Claude Chabrol. The plot is completely unusual and very simple, it is not tagged by an specific genre and can be resumed in the storyline; however, the screenplay, direction, performances and camera work make the difference. The opening scene shows a beautiful area in the countryside of France where the plot takes place. Helene is a fascinating character with her contradictory and ambiguous behavior and relationship with Popaul. Their chemistry is also perfect. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "O Açougueiro" ("The Butcher")

Note: On 06 February 2011 I saw this film again on DVD.

Note: On 06 December 2024, I saw this film again.

Amongst the guests at a wedding are a Helene, a lonely teacher, played by Stephane Audran, and an ex-army butcher (Jean Yanne). Against their differences, the two develop a friendship. However, in the town there lurks a serial killer, and that killer may or may not be the butcher himself. Plagued with feelings of doubt and fear, Helene finds herself constantly at tenterhooks regarding her new friend (of sorts), and surprises and shocks are placed intricately until the very last frames.

At 90 minutes, this mystery feels longer than it is, and that may be due to some of the stylistic techniques adapted by director Chabrol, such as the languid and very sparse use of camera movement, and shots of the bells to contribute to a sense of time. Content-wise, he borrows from Hitchcock, using themes of shared secrets, obsession and moral ambiguity. These themes are used well, creating appropriate amounts of suspense and anticipation in the viewer, and Chabrol plays with his audience deftly, placing surprises and non-surprises in sequence so that we are every bit as nervy as Audran. He is less concerned with explaining the motives for the killings than just presenting them, and for that, and chilling atmosphere of indifference is created throughout the film.

The two leads are strong in their performances, and the slow, fragile romance between them is as credible as it is integral to the plot. In particular, Stephane Audran shines, as a woman who begins, poised, content and assured, only to finish ruffled and perhaps, as the ending shot shows, a little ruined by the events that she has witnessed. The film is carried along by an eerie, quasi-apocalyptic score by Pierre Janse and Domonique Zardi, which haunts long after the film has ended.

If the ending does feel like somewhat of a copout, that may because we as the audience have viewed one plot twist too many, and the frequency and slightness at which each twist is revealed diminishes its impact somewhat. But for the most part, this is good film-making; quite unpretentious, coolly aloof, and the subtle delivery only works to its advantage.

B+

Chabrol's triumph and also Stephane Audran's finest performance;only "le festin de Babette" will give her a part as strong as this one.She plays a luminous radiant beaming schoolteacher ,teaching her pupils spelling with a little help from Honore de Balzac and dance with "le menuet du Bourgeois Gentilhomme",a Molière-Lully collaboration.She epitomizes honesty,loyalty,innocence and devotion to her work.In direct contrast to her,we have Popaul,the butcher,masterfully played by Jean Yanne (He's never been as good as with Chabrol:please,please,do see "que la bête meure" (The beast must die)):He's obviously in love with Hélène /Audran but he realizes the gap between them.He's a crude uneducated brute,but his clumsiness is so touching you side with him.But we know from the start that won't be a happy story:the first scene,dealing with Cro-Magnon in dark caves heralds a story of blood and bestiality.Popaul is Cro-Magnon ,but he's also a victim of the war they waged with his blood.Chabrol 's camera insists on the war memorial,this inhuman piece of stone surrounded by four shells.LOOKS are more important than words between Popaul and Hélène,and as she begins to comprehend the horror of the situation,we know ,that in spite of what Popaul has done,she feels for him.Chabrol excels in depicting a small village ,French critics often compare him to an entomologist."Le boucher" remains his finest work to date.