Mort d'un pourri (1977)
Directed by Georges Lautner

Film Review

With its exceptional production values (not least of which is its high-calibre cast), Mort d'un pourri is the definitive 1970s policier.  Well-paced, well-written and filmed with panache, this is a rare example of a French crime thriller which can rightly be termed a work of art (falling just short of the genius shown by Jean-Pierre Melville in his thrillers).  At the height of his powers and popularity, Alain Delon turns in one of his best performances (for which he was nominated for a César in 1978).  Surprisingly, in this film Delon plays neither a gangster nor a cop (the roles with which he is best associated), but a rather amiable business man who sees himself as a moral crusader, and who has (in typically Delon-esque fashion) an extraordinary capacity to survive.

Starring alongside Delon are such familiar faces as Maurice Ronet, Stéphane Audran, Ornella Muti, Michel Aumont, Julien Guiomar and the legendary German actor Klaus Kinski.   Georges Lautner directed the film, with a script from Michel Audiard, the same team which brought us the popular spoof policier Les Tontons flingueurs (1963).   The cinematography is provided courtesy of Henri Decaë, one of the most sought-after directors of photography in France at the time (beloved by both the New Wave and traditional directors).   This ensemble of talent almost guarantees a great film, and the end product can hardly be termed a disappointment.  This is nothing less than two hours of suspense-filled drama, with exquisite performances (from actors who are capable of showing us the meaning of fear and pain), and the occasional death-defying stunt thrown in for good measure.

The film's subject is typical of its time.  By the mid 1970s, the French thriller genre (in both novels and films) had moved away from the traditional gangster format and was introducing a new enemy: a corrupt system of administration.   Whereas the villains of the past had been drugs barons, pimps or jewel thieves, they were now crooked policemen, greedy businessmen or self-seeking politicians, often embroiled together in some sinister global conspiracy.  This new sub-genre, the néo-polar, echoed a series of prolific scandals which were rocking France at the time, and so it was not surprising that the genre became enormously successful between the late 1970s and the early 1980s.   “Trust no one”, one of the phrases used repeatedly in Mort d'un pourri, is particularly appropriate in the chilling world of néo-polar paranoia, a world which is not too far removed from our own...

Film Synopsis

Xavier Maréchal agrees to provide his friend Philippe Dubaye with an alibi when the latter confesses to him that he has just murdered a business associate, Serrano.  Not long afterwards, Xavier is contacted by a restaurateur named Fondari, who makes enquiries about certain documents listing the names of several prominent individuals (including some important politicians) who are up to their necks in organised crime.

It so happens that Dubaye has the incriminating documents in his possession, but before he can make any use of them he is killed by an unknown assailant.  Fully seized of the fact that his own life is now in danger, Xavier flees with the documents and leaves them at a station in the left luggage office.  The deaths of Dubaye's wife Chistiane and her lover follow in quick succession and convince Xavier that he is up against a formidable and determined enemy.  Unable to trust even the police, he now finds himself fighting a lone battle to expose the killer - before the killer disposes of him...