Kattiera Nana I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

MoPoshy Absolutely brilliant

Casey Duggan It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

Scarlet The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Kirpianuscus ... it is the lead and the most important motif for I love this film. all the rules of Gothic novel. the impecable acting. the splendid story. the embrodery of mistery, seduction and values of a lost time. Paris of the middle of XIX century. and Gerard Depardieu in his best form. short, one of films like a great travel across time, spaces, significances, looking the truth in special manner, with special toools, out of ordinary rules of genre. maybe, an old fashion film. and that is more than a good point. but one of great things defining refuge in authentic art of cinema and its basic purpose.

lastliberal If you are looking for a great story, look elsewhere, as this has just the thinnest of story to accompany fantastic visuals.The is the first feature-length film worldwide to be shot with hi-def cameras. It is a visual stunner with visual effects by Pascal Giroux (The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc). The film itself is fast, due to the frantic editing, and sometimes hard to follow, but a treat to experience 1830s Paris with opium dens, drugged virgins piled on top of one another, and offices and laboratories of a scale and complexity that boggle the imagination.It is based upon a true French detective, who was the model for more famous detectives, and involves the hunt for a masked martial arts master that apparently sucks in the souls of it's victims. The is, apparently, basis for this type of monster in Japanese folklore.The ending is just incredible and, like the entire film, a visual treat, but the story will leave you unsatisfied.

the-lady-of-death As a friend's recommendation, I took on "Vidocq" in my movie arsenal. The plot is forever thick and leaves you guessing until the end. Twists and Turns, and an Originality that keeps you locked in your seats. At times you will find yourself wrinkling your nose to some of the eroticism presented in this film, while at the same time captivated by the uniqueness of the concepts and situations which occur throughout the film. It's a "double wrapped" present, sort of how it would be to get a gift in a box, in a box. Overall quality is pleasing to the eye and stimulating to the brain. I continue to recommend this film to anyone who enjoys a good thriller, or mind bending visual experience. However DO keep in mind the rating is exact and to the point. "R" for a reason. Enjoy!

dr_praetorius35 Along with "Le pacte des Loups", "Vidocq" can be spotted as the beginning of a french invasion in horror and fantastic genre. Viewing it 6 years after its first presentation on-screen, when French cinema has now produced such chillers as Haute Tension or L'intérieur, its easy to be impressed with the path the genre seems to follow in this most improbable country... Although Horror french movies are not ALL good, "Vidocq" is a prime example of a good and original piece of work coming from Moliere's land (and you should also pay close attention to the other movies named above...).While the story behind this gorgeous movie (every single frame is a "tableau") is pretty simple, there is much to love in this flick. All actors are quite good and every single characters is so well defined that, even with few words, the viewers can be delighted with their playing (Dussolier is especially good...). Costumes and settings are part of the fun here: with digital effects used with overwhelming intensity, Pitof have created a world that tap easily in our Gothic sensibility, yet the few historical events (the tensions between the people and the government is somehow palpable though we don't see much of it: it creates an ambiance of decadence that permeates every scenes) depicted here and there help keeping a strange aura of reality to this very improbable story... As I said: its clearly part of the fun...As the aforementioned simple story told before, Pitof edited his movie in a very energetic way, the scenes flowing easily from present to past and thus maintaining the viewer's interest. It helps that it begins with a Bang: the titular character being killed by the criminal (and what a criminal!) he is after in an industrial setting that could be hell (it simply have to be seen...). After that, a journalist, stating that he is Vidocq's official biograph, is searching for the truth: what happened to Vidocq and who killed him... And thus begin the darkest ride into the darkest sides of Paris ever filmed... with a satisfying punch in the end... This ending is good in a way that make the movie interesting to watch again in the lights of this very last information. Another interesting point: the story of Vidocq and his colleague Nimier, being told during the opening credit: keep your eyes open to read every newspaper's titles that goes here and there among the artisan's of this movie and you will have a complete fleshed out background for those characters...All and all, a very good and deliciously dark flick that would satisfy those weary of the mainstream horror cinema... This is not a film to read about. To fully experienced it, you have to see it... Believe me!