Nayan Gough
A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.
Guillelmina
The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.
Logan
By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.
Leofwine_draca
Although it bears superficial similarities to David Fincher's Seven, CRIMSON RIVERS is very much its own film and if I had to pick a film to partner it I'd choose the Christopher Lambert-starrer RESURRECTION. This is a French thriller full of Gallic charm and style even if it covers familiar ground and the technical qualities are strong enough to make it stand on its own merits. The film has a strong structure, initially cutting between two separate and seemingly unconnected story lines. Jean Reno (LEON) is on hand as a tough-as-nails detective hunting down the killer of a man found tortured to death, his body hung from a mountain. Vincent Cassel (EASTERN PROMISES) is an unorthodox cop looking into a case of desecration. Before too long, the paths of these cops intertwine and then the film gets really good, thanks to this central pairing.The buddy-buddy cop idea is as old as the hills but Reno and Cassel are two fantastic actors who breathe new life into it. Watching their verbal and physical sparring is delightful. Reno plays it subdued and brooding while Cassel is wonderful given a rare opportunity to shine in a good guy role for once. Really, the serial killer story is merely the background for these two fine Frenchmen to do what they're made to do. The story itself is adequate, but the climax suffers from being rushed and too confusing, leaving many viewers scratching their heads and wondering just what has been going on. The eventual twist is also rather outlandish. Still, this doesn't matter, because the movie never stops being entertaining.The bleak and chilly surroundings reminded me of INSOMNIA, while the instrumental soundtrack adds heaps to the suspense. There's an undercurrent of sadism and themes of Nazism and genetic engineering that give this film its dark heart. There are also some nice action set-pieces, including an excellent car chase that breathes life into the tired film cliché, and a fun fight between Cassel and a couple of thugs that doesn't fit with the rest of the movie but which I enjoyed all the same. A film that works purely because of the strength of the two main actors involved, CRIMSON RIVERS is a lot of fun and a highlight of the genre.
SnoopyStyle
Parisian police commissioner Pierre Niemans (Jean Reno) is called in to investigate a murder of 32-year old single professor Rémy Caillois of mountain-side picturesque university in Gueron. He's been horribly beaten left naked in a fetal position on the side of a mountain. The university is an isolated self-sufficient incestuous place. Meanwhile volatile inspector Max Kerkerian (Vincent Cassel) is investigating a grave desecration and a school break in.I really like the start with the creepy isolated location and the vicious murder investigation. I like the tone of it and I love Jean Reno's work. Then they split the movie into two investigations. I have nothing against Vincent Cassel or his side of the story. I just couldn't wait for them to get back to Reno. It just breaks up the movie and takes away the tension. The two investigations give off different tones anyways. Around midway, the two detectives are forced together but it needed to happen sooner. They form a fine combative duo. With more time together, they could create more chemistry in the relationship. The mystery is a convoluted one and not altogether satisfying. There is just one too many craziness going on.
dave-sturm
This French crime thriller has a tremendous global reputation and it is well deserved. Shame on me, but one reason is that it IS an American crime thriller. Only everyone involved is French, they speak French and it was filmed in France.This is not to criticize this flick, but this movie references a ton of American movies. For one reference, "The Shining." The entire setting is at a university in the French Alps that is so remote that it can be cut off for a month at a time during winter from the nearby village. What are they up to? This is not your normal university. It is so insular that most of the professors and students, all of whom are geniuses, are children of former professors and students. Can you say, "eugenics"? One step to "uber race".The setting is a stunning portrayal of a remote place in the Alps. In the U.S., this would be the Rockies. Or, perhaps, the Sierra Nevada. Lonesome territory. Who knows what goes on.The ending revelation, I have to admit, caught me by surprise. But it was earned.I am not one to urge American remakes of European films, but this would work as a remake stateside because the plot touches on issues that Americans have had (at least a little) experience with -- fascism, eugenics and racism.That stuff was crazy. But there is a vestigial legacy. Can you say "tea party?"
Graham Greene
The best detective stories allow their central arc of enigmatic mystery to unravel slowly, leaving behind a trail of clues for the audience to follow. Therefore, it is important when adapting the story to a medium such as film that the clues aren't signalled too early, giving the audience the chance to search in the dark with only a few subtle elements of light to work with. It is also important that the film and its various strands of character, theme and narrative all eventually lead to the same place, confounding but also confirming what the viewer had expected all along.The Crimson Rivers (2000) by La Haine (1995) director Mathieu Kassovitz sticks to this method fairly closely for the most part; giving us the usual archetypes familiar from this kind of heavily investigatory detective fiction alongside the usual contemporary preoccupations with dark, gloomy, atmospheric visuals and intriguing, idiosyncratic characters. It is also refreshing to see a director intelligent enough to allow the film's location to become the centre of their story; framing his scenes so that the ominous presence of the towering French Alps casts a foreboding and omnipotent shadow across these characters and the story itself to perfectly set up a certain sense of the foreshadowing of later, thematic events. As the Alps hold a serious significance over the direction the narrative will take, Kassovitz understandably exploits the set up perfectly; using forced perspectives to give the impression of the characters gradually being surrounded, even asphyxiated by the landscape, to create a more potent feeling of suffocating claustrophobia.The idea of claustrophobia is mirrored by the interior production design, which dwarfs our protagonists against low ceilings cracked with damp, drab, monochromatic tones and deeper shades of autumn, and stark, naturalistic lighting with plenty of shadows. These visuals complement the narrative beautifully, going beyond the obvious and somewhat lazy comparisons to David Fincher's classic detective thriller Se7en (1996) to create a style and atmosphere that seems just right for this kind of twisted, slow-building set up. The story is admittedly fairly well worn, with two seemingly mismatched cops thrown together in the pursuit of a vicious serial killer and slowly developing a strong bond as their lives and rank are thrown into jeopardy and confusion. So essentially we're dealing with the typical buddy-cop clichés, though with more believability and less reliance on comic relief, with any real attempt at humour usually undercut by the explicitness of the violence and that fantastic air of dark, disturbing dread.The central performances from Jean Reno and Vincent Cassel are both very good, with Reno portraying the older, wiser, more intuitive detective paired off with Cassel's headstrong loose cannon. Combined with that fantastic build up of slow burning tension, the intricacies of the plot and the thick air of pure atmospheric dread, we should be looking at a standout, A+, modern-day crime thriller. Unfortunately, the last ten minutes of the film suffer from a serious drop off, creating a dénouement worthy of the worst kind of late night B-movie or TV thriller. It's a real shame too, with the first hour of the film creating such a searing and enigmatic sense of mystery that really draws us, in before the pieces of the puzzle are blown away by a bizarre climax that stretches plausibility beyond breaking point. As a result, the ending seems like an anachronism within the film's post-modern framework; offering us all the answers presented at once in a manner that seems incredibly lazy and unfair given the great sense of mystery that was previously unfolding.In this respect, I would draw comparisons to two of the most recent films by Italian horror/thriller director Dario Argento, in particular Sleepless (2000) and The Card Player (2004). Both of these films feature a great first half rife with mystery and suspense, but loose it in the final act with a complete disregard for logic, character or the thrill of expectation. In similar fashion, the first hour of The Crimson Rivers is excellent; great style, great characters and a story that pulls us in. Unfortunately, the pace cannot be maintained and the end of the film will no doubt leave many viewers angry, confused and severely disappointed.
