Quelqu'un derrière la porte

Bronson's fans would be very surprised ,had they the opportunity to see this Nicolas Gessner movie.He's not here the he-man they expect.He plays an amnesiac,caught like a fly in a cobweb by shrink Perkins.In this kind of thriller ,Perkins' "psycho prestige" works and it makes the audience feel he's watching a Hitchcock ersatz-which is not that much bad after all,a Hitchcock ersatz may be much better than a genuine X....... thriller.The main problem lies in the fact that most of the time,it seems like a filmed stage production.Hitchcock could easily get away with such works as "the rope " or "dial M for murder".Gessner has not his genius and his directing becomes sometimes ponderous. Hitchcok's lessons will be much better applied on "sleuth" ,Mankiewicz's triumph the following year,and to a lesser degree,on Penn's "dead of winter" (1987).

Late Jill Ireland plays the female part ,as it was often the case in those days,as far Bronson movies were concerned.Nicolas Gessner continued his work with American actors on his follow-up which would be a long time coming (late seventies) "la petite fille au bout du chemin" (the little girl who lives down the lane)and featured Jodie Foster and Martin Sheen.It was probably his best .Then he worked abroad without great success.His most notable work was for French TV "le château des oliviers " (early nineties,with Brigitte Fossey)which gained the audience's approval.

In the late 60's, having not made the box-office impact he so desired in America, Charles Bronson began acting in European films, where he immediately became a hit, establishing the enigmatic screen persona he is still known for today. Some of the films he made during that time were great, others weren't, but all held entertainment value of one kind or another. One of the more intriguingly off-beat was 'Someone Behind the Door', following a neurosurgeon who takes a strange man suffering from amnesia into his home, seemingly to recover his identity. However, as time marches on, it becomes clear that the doctor has other, far more sinister plans in mind, and his manipulation of the amnesiac's memories are just the beginning.

Directed by Nicolas Gessner, 'Someone Behind the Door' is an occasionally tense psychological thriller that isn't particularly well-written, but features two fine central performances from Bronson as the amnesiac and Anthony Perkins as the neurosurgeon, as well as artistic, stylish cinematography from Pierre Lhomme.

There is an atmosphere of dread and mystery that is palpable from the opening shots, which grows in intensity, ever-building towards an explosive finale. Lhomme's odd use of space and his irregular framing heightens this feeling of intrigue- as well as being visually stimulating to watch. It may not be the work of Sven Nykvist, but it is effective at creating and maintaining the tone of quiet, enigmatic agitation that runs throughout the film.

Perkins and Bronson might seem like an odd combination, but they work together brilliantly (apparently enjoying an off-screen friendship to boot). Bronson powerfully underplays his role, seeming like a cat cornered in a veterinary surgery- his fear, vulnerability and frustration is quite palpable. Bronson shows us the pain someone suffering from amnesia would undergo in a subtle, quiet and very effective manner. Later in the film, when his past is made known to himself and the audience, it is a highly impactful moment solely because of his strong, measured performance (as the writing in the screenplay really is consistently average). There are relatively few times in his career when he would have the opportunity to display his range as an actor- here you can witness one of his more interesting performances.

Perkins was a massively talented, versatile performer and proves that fact once again here. As the duplicitous neurosurgeon, he is seedy, vile and utterly watchable. He brings a natural charm and levity to the role that is most appreciated, as the character is quite contemptible- one could imagine a lesser actor playing him as a one-note, manipulative villain. Perkins was more intelligent than that, making the fellow oddly likable- though still utterly monstrous.

Jill Ireland also has a small role as Perkins' wife, though her performance makes little impact, and the character isn't one of much- if any- depth. However, this is less of a problem with her than it is with the writing. The screenplay is credited to four people- including Gessner and Marc Behm, who wrote the story to 'Charade', among others- and while it has some interesting and tense moments, it is terribly mediocre.

While the central conceit is intriguing- if far-fetched- the story is far too predictable, the dialogue too stilted and the characterization too tenuous to leave a positive lasting impression. Without the depth of Bronson's performance, his character would be incredibly boring and under-written, and without the joy of Perkins' one, his character would be a caricature of an evil doctor- nothing more. How the four writers couldn't come up with some good dialogue or meaningful characterization is confounding, considering they all proved their talent when working on other projects.

All that said, the film is entertaining and suspenseful, due in large part to the stylish camerawork and fine central performances from the lead actors. While 'Someone Behind the Door' suffers from derivative, lifeless screenwriting at times, it's not a bad film, containing some genuinely surprising moments of real tension. For fans of Bronson and Perkins, it's highly recommended- though fans of Gessner's signature, strange brand of cinema might be a little bit disappointed.

Nicolas Gessner :" For close-ups of hands,I usually inserted my own ,because it's an intricate and tricky operation .But obviously ,I couldn't do it with Tony ,because he had such very characteristic hands "

Fluent in French for he had been learning this language since he was hardly four, Perkins would work twice with Claude Chabrol ("le scandale " " la décade prodigieuse") and that director would probably have made a better film than Gessner on a screenplay based on a play (it was performed on stage in France). The English refused to co-produce the film cause the unions refused American stars as the leads ;it was released in both versions , Perkins' voice is heard in both.

But the movie is not bad ,with a good atmosphere ,and ,it helps, several scenes filmed on location on the wild British coast in Folkestone.Perkins is well cast as a shrink , forbidding ,daunting and formidable under his wide smile .

The contrast between the two personalities ,at once in the movie and in real life,is striking : the flanky elegant aristocrat Perkins and the macho sturdy Bronson ,here cast against type ,and a little ill at ease in a part of an amnesiac who becomes a puppet in the doctor's hands .The fact that Mrs Perkins (Jill Ireland)in the film was Bronson's real life wife adds to the confusion of a somewhat far-fetched plot the ending of which is not really satisfying , but they perhaps wanted an open one.The plot ,although intriguing , is not as efficient as Anthony Shaffer's or Agatha Christie's plays .

"The slight tension between them enhanced their performance" Gessner said ;Bronson was distruthful and feared that his director and co-star could lead into doing things he would regret .Anyway it was not easy to cast against type an actor so sure of himself (and who made much more money at the box office).

It met mixed critical reception in 1971,but since it has aged pretty well , thanks to the two principals, whose relationship is fascinating.

French shot/English speaking psychological thriller mirroring François Truffaut mirroring Alfred Hitchcock has a perfectly cast Anthony Perkins as a neurosurgeon taking an amnesiac patient to his plush home in order to (supposedly) help the nameless stranger, played by an only slightly miscast Charles Bronson, pacing taut and timid like a caged beast during his pre-fame European Phase...

But this is really Perkins' ride, providing another hiding-a-dark-secret creepy guy role...

And from the mellow cadence, what could have been cat-and-mouse is more like mouse-and-mouse, or mouse and toothless cat, even during Bronson's sporadic tantrums in a noirish plot involving Jill Ireland as the doc's cheating wife (employing a cute Agathe Natanson as their maid, who'd have fit the ingenue role much better)...

It's no irony that both Bronson and Perkins are ultimately best remembered playing killers the audience sympathizes with, and director Nicolas Gessner uses effective zoom shots and strategic camera angles/setups to the advantage of this "chessboard mystery" (mainly involving one set) where both antagonist and protagonist seem equally sinister and vulnerable...

And despite SOMEONE BEHIND THE WINDOW wielding an art-house short film plot-line stretched to 90-minutes, it doesn't drag either way.

Two legendary movie stars make the most of the situation in this enjoyable, if not exactly that believable, drama. Anthony Perkins is Laurence Jefferies, a neurosurgeon working in Britain who intends to do something about his cheating wife Frances (Jill Ireland, a.k.a. Mrs. Charles Bronson). He realizes that an amnesiac (Bronson) whom he's just met will make the perfect patsy. All he has to do is convince the stranger that Frances is *his* wife, lay out evidence of the affair, and let the stranger get revenge on behalf of him.

The script (adapted from a novel by Jacques Robert) may not exactly be airtight, but the set-up is still pretty irresistible. Director Nicolas Gessner ("The Little Girl Who Lived Down the Lane") handles things in capable if not overly stylish fashion. Part of the effectiveness stems from enjoying the machinations of this doctor, and how he's spent so much time working on solving his problem. True enough that he may be tops in his field, but as we can see, he's been a highly inadequate husband. Perkins is so much fun to watch in this antagonistic role.

But any fan of Bronson will find this particularly compelling since Bronson is not a macho man of action, but a highly suggestible and vulnerable character (who doesn't even receive a proper name). Ireland delivers one of her better performances as the wife; good support is provided by Henri Garcin as the lover, Adriano Magistretti as Jefferies' brother-in-law, Agathe Natanson as Lucy, and Colin Mann as the police sergeant.

The conclusion to the film may come as disappointing to some viewers, since very little is resolved, but others may find it intriguing that the film ends with a question mark. (All those cuts, back and forth, between two of the main characters get annoying quickly, however.)

Thankfully, "Someone Behind the Door" is over and done in a reasonable amount of time, so at least it doesn't go on longer than it really should.

Seven out of 10.