Que la bête meure

A quality noir drama out of Argentina from director Román Viñoly Barreto, but beware going into it that the titular beast (Guillermo Battaglia) is a real jerk. This is a guy who openly carries on an affair with his business partner's wife, can't keep his hands off his sister-in-law, beats his wife and stepson, and kills a boy in a hit and run. There are many who would love to see him dead (including the viewer!), but none more so than a murder mystery author (Narciso Ibáñez Menta) who wheedles his way closer to him by romancing the sister-in-law (Laura Hidalgo).

The story was adapted from the novel of the same name by Cecil Day-Lewis (Daniel's father), and as Eddie Muller from TCM explains, told out of order to heighten the drama, a technique that worked. Barreto moves the film along well, and the fine cinematography helps create an atmosphere of menace, one felt more acutely because children are involved. Menta's reserved character (and performance) are a great contrast to Battaglia's, and Hidalgo adds sizzle. Overall, quite entertaining, and it was very refreshing that its ending was unencumbered by the American Production Code.

Very simply, it's a sin that 'The beast must die' (or as the Spanish title would have it, 'La bestia debe morir') isn't more well known - this is an absolutely incredible film noir, handily matching the best of Hollywood or any comparable industry. Accordingly co-written between hard-working star Narciso Ibáñez Menta and director Román Viñoly Barreto, the adapted screenplay is truly outstanding - rich, dynamic, charged, and rife with robust detail in all regards. Characters are wonderfully deep and complex, and the dialogue is fantastically brilliant - sharp, and clever. Scenes are exquisitely arranged - finding the perfect balance between what to show, and what to withhold, as to build marvelous uneasy tension and suspense. And the narrative is superbly engrossing - compelling, and deftly weaving in impactful emotional beats and just enough mystery to keep us unsure of just how it will all unfold.

The cast is exceptional in bringing their characters to life. Each and every actor demonstrates great range and nuance - even the child actors - and even in parts with much less time on screen. Jorge Rattery is a truly despicable villain, one of the worst devils I've seen in a movie, and Guillermo Battaglia embodies him with immediately loathsome spite in every word and action, and even in presence alone. Linda Lawson is a troubled woman caught at an unenviable crossroads, and Laura Hidalgo inhabits the role with fabulous poise and emotional breadth. Though not seen quite as much, it's also well worth mentioning Milagros de la Vega and Beba Bidart, both bringing a certain conniving viciousness in very different ways to their respective roles as Señora Rattery and Rhoda, respectively. And then of course there's Ibáñez Menta. In realizing protagonist Felix Lane, Ibáñez Menta illustrates profound, calculated subtlety and poise, feeling everything but betraying very little. Lane is a man of very careful intelligence - and clearly, so is Ibáñez Menta; so naturally does he slide into the role that one may at times forget the portrayal and the player are not one and the same. Hats off to them all!

Great care is put into every little aspect - set design and decoration, hair, makeup, costume design, and so on. A few instances with especially strong consideration for lighting, editing, or effects are done very well. And it's all tied together with a keen eye from Viñoly Barreto in his capacity as director, with some especially great shots making use of unconventional angles, close-ups, and more. The screenplay itself and the whole cast do so much to bring the picture to fruition, but Viñoly Barreto can surely also be credited with helping to draw out such excellent performances, and ensuring 'The beast must die' turned out as the wonderfully affecting, absorbing, satisfying tale that it is.

I find it difficult to write more without going in circles or revealing plot points. It was really only by chance that I came across this; Argentinean cinema isn't exactly a common sight in the US in any way. I'm so glad I did, though - it's clear that the production was approached with substantial passion and fastidiousness from everyone involved, and their dedication paid off handsomely. Once again: I think this stands tall with the best film noir that any country's film industry to offer, and it's hard not to think that it's broadly overlooked simply on account of originating from the global south. With all this having been said, it's a terrible mistake to pass on watching 'The beast must die' if you have the chance - wherever and however you can, this is well worth your time. Very highly recommended!

Don't get me wrong, I love classic cinema. Hawks, Ford, Wilder, Hitchcock, you name it.

But the fact that a film is old, in black and white and with good photography doesn't mean that it's good. The way this film is put together is representative of a very naive and simple-minded way of storytelling.

The main culprit (though not the only one), is the script. Characters are not believably defined, it's all broad strokes. The main concern is the plot, instead of the humans that make it move. And the structure, while risky, has its problems too.

I can offer some examples of this:

1) When the hero woos Linda, there is nothing playful about the way he does it. Instead, he merely overflatters her. He makes himself look silly, in no way charming. This man is supposed to be intelligent.

2) Later in the film, when Rattery mistreats Linda, who is supposed to be the hero's girlfirend, he witnesses it and does nothing about it. And Linda basically accepts it.

3) At the beggining of the movie, we have a scene between a lawyer, called Nigel, and his girlfriend. It's a very long scene whose only purpose is to give us plot information. The girlfriend is never seen again, and the Nigel character is almost irrelevant to the plot.

There's good cinematography here and there, but the technique at times is also quite clumsy. There is a scene where a woman is shaking up a child, and the way it's shot and edited, it feels completely awkward. In some shots the child doesn't move but shouts off-camera, and the scene feels unreal.

Most of the performances are very broad, a lot of the times the plot moves via uninteresting and unsubtle dialogue, and the characters are simply not clearly defined. Rattery is simply a very bad person, there's very little that we can say about him, aside from that. And the hero is, well, a perfect guy: smart, elegant, well-natured... There are no nuances, no moral ambiguites, nothing. So it all plays like an old fashioned mystery stage play, where everything is naive, dumb and phony.

Ibáñez Menta, of course, was a great actor, but he didn't have a clear charater to play here, and as a leading man he's terribly unattractive.

An Argentinian film noir from 1952. A boy has just poisoned the patriarch of a family w/an investigator assured of his guilt (he catches the boy trying to dispose of the incriminating potable). We then flashback as to how we got here as we meet a popular crime novelist enjoying a day out sailing w/his doting son. It's his birthday & instead of being a joyous occasion it turns tragic when he dies due to a fatal hit & run. Despondent, the novelist, played by Narciso Inbanez Menta, drowns his sorrows in booze & wayward travel but when his car gets stuck on the road near a farm, the caretaker takes him in for the night & relates to him (as he notices hanging movie star pics on a wall) about her prized autographed photo from an actress who was in the area briefly when she & her companion were stuck in the area due to a fender bender. Menta is sure this is his man (since their accident & his son's death took place at the same time). Inveigling his way w/his notoriety into the actress's orbit, his investigation leads to her man, the same poisoned fellow from the film's onset & after discovering his masochistic, arrogant nature, Menta sets out on a road to revenge (he details his conclusions & actions in a comprehensive diary) where he gets his goal but not in the way he expected. Other than the ill fitting opening (putting an unnecessarily weird time signature on a story which doesn't need it), the film ranks as an excellent contender to American counterparts w/a French version & a British mini-series made afterwards confirming the sweep of such a well told tale. The English translation of the title is "The Beast Must Die."

THE BEAST MUST DIE (not to be confused with the 1974 Amicus horror film of the same name) is a 1952 Film Noir and is one of two new releases from Flicker Alley and the Film Noir Foundation that showcase two "lost" movies from 1950s Argentina. The film is based on a once celebrated novel from an unusual source, the 1938 crime thriller of the same name written by Nicholas Blake. What makes it unusual is that Blake was the pen name used by England's then Poet Laureate, Cecil Day-Lewis when he wrote crime novels before he became PL. Today he is remembered as the father of award winning actor Daniel Day-Lewis.

The story concerns a widower, mystery writer Felix Lane, whose young son is struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver. He becomes obsessed with finding that driver and then killing him personally. It takes a while but he eventually locates the person and then infiltrates his household in order to get closer to his victim. He befriends and uses various family members in order to achieve his quest. Lane discovers that the person is a rich, no-good scoundrel that everyone hates so his task is made both easier and harder since many people have good reasons to want him dead.

The performances by an ensemble cast of top Argentinian actors is first rate led by Narciso Ibanez Benta as the grief stricken and then later revenge obsessed father. Other standouts include Laura Hidalgo as the female lead (but not a femme fatale), Guillermo Bataglia as the "beast" who brutalizes his family, and Humberto Balado as the young nephew who reminds the father of his dead son. The photography is suitably atmospheric and the direction by Roman Vinoly Barreto is as good as anything by John Huston, Jacques Tourneur, or Anthony Mann.

Thanks once again to Flicker Alley for continuing their ongoing Film Noir Series in partnership with "Noircheologist" Eddie Muller and to his Film Nor Foundation for rescuing THE BEAST MUST DIE from oblivion. The DVD/Blu Ray combo comes with a 21 page booklet that is loaded with photos and information. Other extras include a filmed introduction on the movie with Muller, a conversation with the director's son, and a profile of lead actor Narciso Ibanez Menta. Finally there is an optional commentary from film historian Guido Segal. An absolute must have for fans of Film Noir...For more reviews visit The Capsule Critic.