Les Fantômes du chapelier

It was out of sheer coincidence that this viewing followed those of Chabrol's JUST BEFORE NIGHTFALL (1971) and THE BREACH (1970) since it has thematic similarities with the former, while adopting an incongruously stylized approach as the latter!

In fact, we have here a strangling (which, however, is a flashback this time around and occurs towards the end rather than at the very start) that is almost a replica of the one in JUST BEFORE NIGHTFALL. Similarly, the culprit is depicted as being unable to find peace of mind (and, in this case, stop his crime spree) until he is apprehended! With this in mind, the "Cult Filmz" website (where THE HATTER'S GHOST was given a similar rating as mine) bemoans the unsatisfying ending but, as for myself, I was not bothered by its ordinariness (this is, after all, essentially a low-key affair).

Incidentally, Leonard Maltin – who unjustly lambasts the film and awards it a measly *1/2 – may have been baffled by the seemingly deliberate heavy-handedness at work and, consequently, took Michel Serrault's performance in particular to be absurdly overstated. He is literally a "Mad Hatter", thus providing a link to yet another of the director's earlier efforts i.e. ALICE OR THE LAST ESCAPADE (1977). Indeed, as with the afore-mentioned (and intrinsically histrionic) THE BREACH, this could well be deemed a parody Chabrol movie if it were not so compelling (based on a novel by Georges Simenon) and obviously accomplished!

In the long run, THE HATTER'S GHOST emerges to be one of the most purely Hitchcockian works by France's own "Master Of Suspense", with definite nods to PSYCHO (1960) and FRENZY (1972) but also featuring a STRANGERS ON A TRAIN (1951)-like complicity between the film's two leads. The other protagonist is Charles Aznavour – no less impressive than Serrault, despite having far less screen-time – as the mousy Armenian tailor who constantly shadows the hatter, even witnessing one of his murders, but is too afraid to report him and, owing to his own frail health, eventually dies. Also in the cast are a young Francois Cluzet as a reporter who not only follows the case but is periodically contacted via taunting letters by the strangler, THE BREACH's Mario David as the clueless Chief of Police and Aurore Clement as an attractive woman all the menfolk lust after but who is clearly fated to cross paths with the killer eventually.

In this film, Claude Chabrol seems to sum up his mastery of the art with a slickly made, macabre, ironic crime story full of Hitchcock elements and top performances by Serrault and Aznavour.

What a splendid little film although I had read the Georges Simenon book but not having watched this it seems was never seen in UK. It is a rather lovely little story with lots of going on underneath not to mention the strangling of a rather lot of women we do not see and about a 'ghost' that is rather strange and never mind that the hatter is followed by the tailor and he seems to have fun until one day he can't. Michel Serrault the great actor and has so many different films like with The Inquisitor (1981) with Lino Ventura, La Cage Aux Folles (1978) and even Les Diaboliques (1955). The very good Charles Aznavour is under played as the Armenian tailor with little money but looks as if he knows what is going on as we are also eventually. It is such a lovely and amusing although nasty but similarly and clever Chabrol film.

"Les fantômes du chapelier" ,very well received at the time of release,still stands as Chabrol's best movie in the eighties,though certain aspects of its premise have undergone some reassessment.

Seen today,the movie displays flaws that were hardly noticeable 20 years ago.First of all,Michel Serrault overplays:his over-the -top performance ,once lauded ,seems now exasperating and throws the movie off balance.(I wonder what Chabrol's other favorite,Michel Bouquet, would have done in this part).This imbalance is increased by the fact that Charles Aznavour's character is not present enough on the screen.Aznavour gives a wonderful portrayal of an Armenian émigré,whom bourgeois Serrault enjoys humiliating and demeaning.With hindsight Aznavour beats Serrault hands down.

The problem with "les fantômes du chapelier" is that it recalls other superior movies:bourgeois impunity had always been treated by Chabrol himself during his 1967-1973 heyday (notably:"la femme infidèle","la rupture" "juste avant la nuit""docteur Popaul"),but also long before him:Henri Decoin's "non coupable" (1946) and "la verite sur Bebe Donge" (1952): in the 1946 film,the intention is much clearier and scarier than in Chabrol's 1982 effort,and ,anyway,Serrault is no match for Michel Simon.We can also mention George Lautner's "le septième juré". "Les fantômes du chapelier" has an eerie side,verging on fantastic ,but ,again,there's the rub:let's face it,it looks like some kind of "psycho" of which the secret would have been be revealed sooner.

Something intriguing:the camera often shows a "Ben Hur" poster in the neighborhood .A tribute to William Wyler is dubious from a "nouvelle vague " family director,but who knows?

See it anyways.Its several incredible moments will make it worth your while.For Charles Aznavour and for Chabrol's always absorbing depiction of a small town.

In the small La Rochelle town, Léon Labbé (Michel Serrault) is a reputable hatter that lives with his crippled wife Mathilde (Monique Chaumette) and his maid Louise Chapus (Christine Paolini) on the upper floors of his store. The boy Valentin (Fabrice Ploquin) works for him at the store. His neighbor across the street is the Armenian tailor Kachoudas (Charles Aznavour), who lives with his wife and five children in the upper floors of his store. La Rochelle is shaken by a strangler that has already killed six women in the last weeks. Léon like to play card with his friends in a bar and is always followed by Kachoudas that suspects he might be the killer. Among his friends are the Chief of Police Caille (Robert Party), Dr. Chaudreau (Victor Garrivier) and the young journalist Jeantet (François Cluzet), who has theories about the strangler. Soon we learn that Léon killed his wife two months ago and begin the crime spree killing her six best friends that usually visit her on her birthday. There is only the seventh woman missing, but he finds that she died of natural causes. Now the sick Léon looks for a replacement and Louise may be his next victim.

"Les fantômes du chapelier" is an original French movie by Claude Chabrol, with a suspenseful story of an insane hatter respected by his community that is a strangler. The cast is impressively great, with names such as Michel Serrault, Charles Aznavour and François Cluzet, among others, and the screenplay keeps the attention of the viewer until the last scene. The plot is timeless and has not aged after more than forty years. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Os Fantasmas do Chapeleiro" ("The Ghosts of the Hatter")