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Not far removed from Denis Dercourt’s 2006 precision revenge thriller “The Page Turner,” Alain Corneau’s knotty tale of female retribution is set in the glass and steel world of corporate France. The plot doesn’t merely twist; it folds back on itself to spring off in entirely unexpected directions. Corneau’s restrained use of atmospheric music (courtesy of jazz legend Pharoah Sanders) locks you in the film’s spell.
Christine (Kristin Scott Thomas) helms her multinational company with a Machiavellian style that includes manipulating her underlings — both male and female — with flirtation, sex, and other clandestine traps.
Christine mentors her ambitious assistant Isabelle (Ludivine Sagnier) with equal parts praise and humiliation. Together, Christine and Isabelle form a sensual bond that loads the dice for their dynamic effectiveness at work. Still, Christine takes all the credit.
Christine’s mixed signals send Isabelle toward a predictable breakdown after a scene of public humiliation proves too much to bear. Having slept with Christine’s boy-toy Philippe, Isabelle holds a few important cards of her own. Thomas and Sagnier create an exotic chemistry together. Sparks fly whenever the two pricelessly gifted actresses share the screen.
“Love Crime” is a meaty little corporate thriller that pulls the rug from clichés of the genre. There’s a streamlined appeal at play. When the complex puzzle of duplicity that Isabelle constructs is revealed in the third act, you have to admire the film’s direct approach. A great French thriller never gets old. This one promises to age very well.
Not Rated. 106 mins.
