Mort d'un pourri

Terrific cast, lovely score and views of Paris, but Georges Lautner was always a mediocre director and it shows badly here with a very challenging script including many monologues and action scenes (a couple of car chases).

Delon as a producer-actor is always the same type: boring, verging on irritating hyper-cool hyper-straight... a supercharged common man. Since the dozen top actors in the supporting cast are all excellent (despite the pedestrian directing) it does not bog down the movie. But the heavy dialogue about political corruption all-around does put the movie in a merry-go-round that lasts for two hours. Not really my idea of a sharp noir.

The car chases (Rémi Julienne) are well-paced but kind of repetitive. Nice try to have one with trucks but it does not add much to the movie. All in all the 'irremediably corrupt political landscape' subtext is nicely impregnating the whole movie, thanks to Michel Audiard, but it gives a damp movie, like a fine pastry dumped for too long in an alcohol-laced preparation.

"Death of a Corrupt Man" begins with, well, the death - or more accurately the murder - of a corrupt man. Only this corrupt man was keeping a detailed journal of his illegal activities and transactions, implicating a lot of the top politicians of Paris. The killer steals the journal and comes to the house of his best friend and president of a company (Alain Delon), in the middle of the night, asking for help. Delon agrees to provide him with an alibi, but there are plenty of people who will be ruined if the journal falls into the wrong hands, and they will stop at NOTHING to get it back. "Death of a Corrupt Man" is essentially the French answer to the popular American pessimistic political thrillers of its era ("Three Days of the Condor, "The Parallax View", etc.), with one man fighting against the entire corrupt system. It's a bit too long (120 minutes) and uneven: tense and involving at times (with some good car stunts by expert Remy Julienne) , talky and dull at other times. Alain Delon and Ornella Muti make a highly attractive leading couple, and give nicely understated performances as well. (**1/2)

I watched this film for its legendary Stan Getz soundtrack and the mesmerising Ornella Muti. But like the annoying Deer Hunter where the totally virtuous hero will leave no stone unturned for his friend and is afraid of nothing and no one, Delon battles the entire corrupt establishment single handedly and no bullet ever touches him. Actually the Deer Hunter is a lot better than this in that great realism and characterisation is set up in the first half then you have the unrealistic second half. In Delon produced films you usually have him in every single tiresome shot and he is totally invincible, uncorrupted and he has no sexual tenderness or weaknesses. He even did this formula for his son's movies which were tiresome wasted opportunities. I will never forgive how he destroyed Zurlini's masterpiece, Indian Summer, by having it recut and removing the scenes that had other people in it.

When Xavier 'Xav' Maréchal (Alain Delon) is awaken by his old friend Deputy Philippe Dubaye (Maurice Ronet), he learns that Philippe has killed the also politician Serrano (Charles Moulin) that has a dossier with documents proving the corruption of several politicians and businessmen including Philippe and was blackmailing him. Xavier accepts to provide an alibi to his friend and to follow the investigation to help Phillippe, who has stolen the dossier. But soon Xavier finds that a network of powerful men wants to retrieve the documents and he has to run to survive.

"Mort d'un pourri", a.k.a. "Death of a Corrupt Man", is a thriller based on politics and the related corruption of the Powers That Be. The plot is full of action with a hopeless conclusion. The beauty of Ornella Muti is impressive. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "A Morte de um Corrupto" ("The Death of a Corrupt Man")

Those who anticipate, as I did, that this will be yet another of the Alain Delon 'policiers' of this period, are in for a pleasant surprise.

In the classic French policier/film noirs the goodies and the baddies are sharply defined but in the hybrid 'neo-polar' genre that flourished in the 1970's one is none too sure whom to trust. The dark and sinister forces at work here are the corrupt politicians, dodgy policemen and shadowy multi-nationals.

This stylish piece directed by Georges Lautner is arguably one of the best of its type. It is a little verbose but with dialogue by Michel Audiard spoken by this excellent cast one doesn't mind too much.

The 'uncredited' contribution to the screenplay by Claude Sautet serves to enhance the film's quality.

Alain Delon is at the height of his popularity here and received a César nomination for his performance as a moral crusader. He both produces and stars and again plays opposite the splendid Maurice Ronet while Stéphane Audran, Daniel Ceccaldi and Klaus Kinski are great value as always. By all accounts Herr Kinski, much to everyone's surprise and relief, turned out to be a real pussycat. Delon's partner at the time, Mireille Darc, who made a few films for this director, has a pretty thankless role as Delon's partner! The eye candy is supplied by Ornella Muti. Who is the murderer? Well, as Agatha Christie reminds us, it is always the one you suspect the least.

Tremendous production values here with legendary Henri Decae replacing Lautner's regular cameraman Maurice Fellous. Lautner has again used the much respected composer Philippe Sarde and as a bonus we have the sound of the saxaphone played by the brilliant but troubled Stan Getz. The film just about sustains its length.

France is certainly no stranger to political scandals so this particular genre must really have struck a cord but of course the French do not have a monopoly in this regard.

As a certain Henry Kissinger once observed: "Corrupt politicians make the other 10% look bad"!