Panique

Quick note for context: I'm writing this review in 2021, a full 75 years since this film was made. On this morning the news headlines scream of lynchings & mob violence in Israel/Palestine as well as pandemic-fueled hate crimes in the USA and gawd knows what else because I really need to shut off the news and go back to watching the Teletubbies.

"Panique" is a magnificently shot, suspensefully told, expertly acted, and powerfully poignant tale about the absolute folly of the human race. Brought to us by master director Julien Duvivier, France's favorite cynic, it's a merciless caricature of humankind which was doubtlessly inspired by the postwar paranoia and righteous rage of the time--itself a vigilante backlash to the insanity of fascism that had dunked Europe into its darkest decade.

That's a mouthful, but if you're going to watch this movie, it's pretty important to realize that the story isn't so much a straightforward crime thriller as much as it's a dark fable, a grotesque portrait of humanity at its worst. Almost every character is detestable, with the fascinating exception of our protagonist "Hire" whom we initially dislike for his coldness but who gradually becomes one of the most endearing & charming characters since Quasimodo. Major props to lead actor Michel Simon for his nuanced performance which leads us through this transformation in our own minds.

Plot overview: Hire is an outsider in his own world. Nobody likes him because he's so distant, unapproachable and worst of all, intelligent. Then one day a beautiful woman rolls into town, the mistress of a criminal who's hiding out there. Hire falls for this dark haired beauty, and as you might guess, this gets him into deep bouillabaisse.

What we get next is a slow, relentless buildup of the plight of the lone individual vs the entire human race. One can't help but feel as if this film is Duvivier's greatest autobiographical work, expressing in no uncertain terms how disappointed he was at society for its less-than-kind reception of his works and himself (Duviver was at one point accused of being a traitor for escaping to the USA during the Nazi occupation). This film begins innocently enough but slowly reels us into one of the most cynical portrayals of human society since Night of the Living Dead. But what keeps this flick entertaining rather than outright depressing is the darkly humorous way in which it's presented. For example:

One scene shows a carnival attraction in a cramped tent: a bunch of female wrestlers preparing to pummel each other for a packed audience's thrill. Over the din of the crowd, someone yells to someone else, "They found the murderer!" to which someone else shouts "What? There's a murderer in here?!" to which someone else shouts "A fire! There's a fire!" to which the whole crowd erupts in "FIRE! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!"

This is just one example of Duvivier's many satirical skewerings of society's idiocy and mob mentality. Images, faces and lighting are wonderfully exaggerated. As you're watching this film, the name Hitchcock will cross your mind dozens of times, but make note that this film was made in 1946 predating many of Hitchcock's masterpieces. You can't help but wonder if the master Hitch himself lifted a few tools from Duvivier's toolbox which he would use in films like "Strangers on a Train" (the carnival scenes), "Rear Window" (the impotent voyeur), and "Vertigo" (a stunning climactic scene which I won't spoil).

"Panique" is sure to burn an imprint on your mind. You definitely don't need to be following this with cable news. Now if I can only find my nephew's Teletubbies DVDs all will be well in the world.

Returning to France after spending the war in Hollywood, Duvivier bravely tackled this Simenon story about a persecuted (Jewish) outsider accused of a crime he did not commit. The idea of scapegoating, of minorities being denounced to the authorities, must have been a sensitive one in France just after the occupation. The protagonist, Monsieur Hire, is played by the great Michel Simon (why do boxers make great actors?), and the lovers who frame him are physically attractve yet morally repellant. The suspense at the end will mess you up. There's a gorgeous love scene before a church in the snow. The resolution has the same sense of bleak irony as LES DIABOLIQUES - evil triumphs, then is punished. A bit like World War Two?

Just as 'Voici les temps des assassins' is Julien Duvivier's best film of the fifties, this must surely be his finest of the forties. I would go so far as to say this is one of the greatest films made by any director in any decade. This adaptation by Charles Spaak of Georges Simenon's novel of 1933 differs slightly from the original novel in which Monsieur Hire is a petty crook of Jewish origin who is under police surveillance for the murder of a young prostitute. In this version he is a highly intelligent, bookish, unsociable loner. This of course makes him an obvious target for the petty, small-minded mediocrities who inhabit the town. Made so soon after the end of the German occupation this film is redolent of collaboration, denunciation and scapegoating. One of the most terrifying of lines is spoken by the loud mouthed, rabble-rousing butcher: 'If there is a black sheep in the flock you slaughter it'. Even by Michel Simon's standards his characterisation of the kind and tragically misunderstood Monsieur Hire is superlative and represents film acting at its very best. Viviane Romance and Paul Bernard excel as the utterly loathsome Alice and Alfred whose machinations cause his downfall. Technically the film is faultless with never a wasted shot and building to a thrilling climax. Mention must be made of Duvivier's preferred editor Marthe Poncin. Behind the camera is Nicholas Hayer who also shot that other masterpiece of mob misrule 'Le Corbeau'. Like Clouzot's film this is dark and deeply cynical and reflects Duvivier's own view 'that we are far from people who love each other'. If any film deserves full marks then it must surely be this.

Michel Simon plays with a lot of subtelty a very recognizable type of human being.Very modern acting on his part. The supporting cast plays in this eccentric manner that characterizes French cinema of this era and they are very good.Totally enjoyable movie.Great direction by Duvivier.It deserves to be a classic.It deserves to be on DVD.

Julien Duvivier was a very capable director who left some fine films--Carnet de bal is one of my favourites, and La belle equipe is a pleasure--but I never thought of him as the equal of Renoir, Clair or Carne. Panique is a solid work that satisfies us; the performances rise to greatness with Simon and Bernard, and the mise-en-scene is very assured. The only cavil I have is with the crowd scenes: they are just not very interesting and do not increase our involvement with the story. Simenon's novel is a character study, not a work of sociology; we don't need to know what the crowd wants.

Michel Simon was a great actor and here he's at his peak. Dryly humorous, love-struck, violent and tough, it's a memorable performance. Viviane Romance was the great vamp of French pre- and post war film, and she gives a lot of vitality to Alice, the girl who gives herself completely to the worthless Alfred. Max Dalban as the bigoted butcher has some very effective scenes. Finally Paul Bernard is splendid as the thuggish Alfred. He made Madeleine Renaud's life miserable in Lumiere d'ete, he dumped Maria Casares in Les Dames du Bois de Boulogne (and was paid back royally for his stupidity): truly, Bernard was one of the great stars of the time.