El secreto de Anthony Zimmer

Director Jerome Salle wanted this film to remind us Hitchcock's or Polanski's movies with the next door guy type getting caught into a web of mistaken identity. He actually tries more with a story which may have had a better chance if it decided whether it wants to play on the thriller or on the romantic movie line. Unfortunately he seems to try to do both and fails on both, because we are never sure what the director wants for us, and because the point of gravity where he takes us changes too sudden. We are left with a well acted film with Sophie Marceau and Yvan Attal leading a good team of actors, but also with a feeling of in-satisfaction because despite the good ideas the film ends by looking too short and too superficial to give us time to be thrilled or to be moved.

I found this movie a bit slow paced in many places, sometimes unnecessary so.

However that being said, I have noticed that the major part of the plot has already been given away in the first 20 minutes of the film. If you watch and listen carefully, you will realize who Anthony Zimmer really is. I thought this is a real let down to this movie. Too predictable.

Sofie Marceau is really very sexy in the movie, much better than what Hollywood filmed her in their movies. As usual, she portrays a woman who is coldly sexy, turning to a hot object of desire in several scenes.

The plot of the movie is relatively simple, and its length is a bit too short. There were many subplot possibilities which were not explored.

If you like a evenly-paced thriller, this is probably for you.

...or she in his? Captivating, elegant little thriller. It's not spectacular in any obvious way, yet I couldn't take my eyes off the screen for just one second. It starts out almost exactly like "Mr Bean's Holiday": a guy on a southbound express train, headed for the coast, hoping for recreation. Which he won't find. That's where the the script leaves the common ground. It's rich in twists and turns, clever to the point of cunning. Production design and cinematography are among the most elegant you will find. Cool, minimalistic interior sets contrast with the time-tested cinematic sparkle of the Côte D'Azur. Similarly, wide-angle shots are inter-cut with extreme close-ups, e.g., of pills dancing on a shaking spiral staircase, the pulsing red halo of the caller light on a ringing telephone, or a pair of shades dropped casually into an earthenware bowl. Scenes you have seen a thousand times, this movie makes you see them with new eyes: a guy killing time watching TV, a car chase in an underground parking lot, or someone having coffee and reading the paper in the morning sun. Admittedly, Sophie Marceau helped to keep me interested. She plays a woman six years her junior, and she more than gets away with it. She is in the shape of her life. I think she may have had something done to her face, but it looks good and doesn't show. I can see why President Mitterand took her on his trips abroad as an icon of French allure. The five-second scene in which she wires herself for the showdown alone made it worth my while. The final plot twist may not be up to common standards of plausibility, but it doesn't subtract from 90 minutes spent in silent wonder at what the French can do with a little sunshine and lot of mascara.

Anthony Zimmer has disappeared with his ill-gotten riches, to change his looks and his voice with plastic surgery to escape the French customs police and a Russian mafia gang. A vacationer is selected on a train by Zimmer's girl friend, as having Zimmer's age and body build, and set up to appear to be Anthony Zimmer in order to fool Zimmer's pursuers. It works well, and the chase is on. One nuance of note: the customs police chief becomes fully aware at the end of what the viewer finds out.

A great film in all ways - superb acting, pacing, plot, scenery, and background music - all integrated in a very involving film. See this first, then see the remake (The Tourist) with Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie to realize the faults of the remake. The Tourist is not all that bad, perhaps even above average, but Anthony Zimmer is much better.

In Paris, the international police force and the Russian mafia are chasing Anthony Zimmer, an intelligent man responsible for laundry of dirty money in France. Zimmer was submitted to a plastic surgery, and his new face and voice are completely unknown. The only means to reach Zimmer is through his beloved mistress Chiara (Sophie Marceau), who is under surveillance of the police and the mobsters. While traveling by train to the country nearby Nice, the common man François Taillandier (Yvan Attal), who has the same body shape of Zimmer, is select by Chiara as if he were Zimmer and used as a bait to lure those that are pursuing her. When Taillandier is chased by the professional Russian killers, he runs the French police when the real situation begins to be disclosed to him.

"Anthony Zimmer" is a great thriller, with a situation that recalls Hitchcock's classic "North By Northwest", i.e., a man mistaken for another and pursued by criminals. The attractive story has many twists, a nice cast with the gorgeous Sophie Marceau and the efficient Yvan Attal in the lead roles. The beautiful locations in France is an amazing tour in this wonderful country. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Anthony Zimmer A Caçada" ("Anthony Zimmer The Hunting")