Parisians wake one morning to find black 4s painted on their doors. Later, a town crier (those still exist?) in Paris receives cryptic messages about the return of The Plague and, sure enough, people start dying the blackest of deaths. It is up to Commissar Adamsberg (José Garcia) to find out just what is going on. This is in the same mold as the CRIMSON RIVERS films and starts off great. But when the full mystery is finally revealed an hour in, you will be pleading for the complexity of a SCOOBY DOO episode. Seriously, the last 10 minutes actually features the killer basically saying, "And I would have gotten away with it too if it hadn't been for you..." Director Regis Wargnier (INDOCHINE) handles the multitude of characters well and there is a thrilling rooftop chase, but the film's reason for existing is a joke. The film adapts a novel by Fred Vargas, the pseudonym for Frédérique Audoin- Rouzea. Apparently Adamsberg is a recurring character in her stories and, just from what I have read briefly online, the guy is a bit more interesting that the lonely cop sketched here.
11 Reviews
Overlong French serial killer thriller
gridoon202424 October 2015
Warning: Spoilers
Director Régis Wargnier gained international fame (and a somewhat controversial Best Foreign Film Oscar) in 1992 for "Indochine", but 15 years later he made what can best be described as a b-movie that in most countries went (and deservedly so) straight to DVD. It's not unwatchable, but it is mediocre. The story lacks propulsion for so long (the film runs nearly two full hours) that when the plot finally starts twisting and turning, it's hard to summon much interest. I must admit that it took me two different sittings to complete the viewing. The cast is good (this was Michel Serrault's last film), although "Indochine"'s star Linh Dan Pham has only a decorative role here. ** out of 4.
When you change the original story, you'd better be a good writer.
notify-christina9 April 2011
Warning: Spoilers
The film was okay, not brilliant but good enough to watch if you want an easy time with not much tension. It felt more like a soap opera episode. From the trailers I knew they would kill the original story but I thought it would still be a good movie, because of the actors. It's not horrible, the acting is fine and I like this way of filming, but the plot is quite shallow at parts and the characters do inexplicable things. There are serious plot holes, because the film makers spent lots of screen time showing us naked behinds of dead bodies and there was no time left for giving the characters some depth and consistency. The writers go straight to the point before the first ten minutes and then try to build tension on things that couldn't support it. All the plot holes are explained in the book.
*spoiler*
The scare wasn't in the possibility of a plague outburst but in not understanding how the trails were connected and why.
If you've read the book or intend to do so, don't watch the film. Don't even think about it. It has changed EVERYTHING and reveals vital parts of the book in the first four minutes. Different characters, different plot, different ending. Only the basic story is the same, but that's like saying 'it's about a serial killer'. EVERYTHING is changed, this movie is definitely not based on F. Vargas book. In fact, it's the opposite for 75% of it.
*spoiler*
The scare wasn't in the possibility of a plague outburst but in not understanding how the trails were connected and why.
If you've read the book or intend to do so, don't watch the film. Don't even think about it. It has changed EVERYTHING and reveals vital parts of the book in the first four minutes. Different characters, different plot, different ending. Only the basic story is the same, but that's like saying 'it's about a serial killer'. EVERYTHING is changed, this movie is definitely not based on F. Vargas book. In fact, it's the opposite for 75% of it.
flawed casting mars otherwise competent police thriller
souchong12 July 2008
French novelist Fred Vargas (female) is adapted for film here.
In this case, the flaws of the film are a reflection of the film maker rather than the source material.
The lead playing Adamsberg is a fine actor, but miscast here. Not enough ragged edges to do justice to the character in the novel. Camille is slighted in the script, and cast as an Asian woman -- not at all how I pictured her.
The cast of potential villains works well, as do most the supporting characters. The action direction is merely competent, not masterful.
Vargas's books are great. Look them up if you can.
In this case, the flaws of the film are a reflection of the film maker rather than the source material.
The lead playing Adamsberg is a fine actor, but miscast here. Not enough ragged edges to do justice to the character in the novel. Camille is slighted in the script, and cast as an Asian woman -- not at all how I pictured her.
The cast of potential villains works well, as do most the supporting characters. The action direction is merely competent, not masterful.
Vargas's books are great. Look them up if you can.
A complete failure
jerome_a_paris29 January 2007
Maybe I should balance my opinion but frankly, I don't find anything to like in this movie, although maybe a few good images of Paris but still... I didn't read the book, I hope it's only the adaptation that's bad... So, I found that: - the dialogs aren't great (not to say they suck), I sometimes felt like I was watching La Cité de la Peur (which is a very good comedy)... - bad acting. Garcia's tone is very weird, tough, neutral, emotionless, which could be fine but here it sounds like he's monotonously reading a script. And the sad thing is, Garcia's acting is among the best in the movie... - a really not so good mise en scène, with ridiculous situations - a bad scenario, at least not very credible. The ending is stupid (or, again, badly adapted)
A meagre and flawed adaptation
dark_coffee28 July 2008
There are tons of movies based on books. Some are good, some are fine, and some are bad. As someone who read most of Fred Vargas's novels, I was quite disappointed by this movie adaptation of "Pars vite et reviens tard". There are too many plot and character changes, but, most importantly, the movie fails to seize the spirit of the novel - which effectively turns it in a bland and unoriginal police thriller.
At its core, "Pars vite et reviens tard" (translated as "Have mercy on us all" in English) is a not-so-traditional police thriller in which we follow Commissaire Jean-Baptiste Adamsberg as he tries to catch a mysterious murderer who makes it seem as if the plague kills his victims. The general storyline is followed in the movie, but most of the finer points have been modified; arguably to make the story more accessible to people who haven't read the book. Indeed, there are lots of details in the book and it would be impossible to include everything. Still, they made some very odd changes that somewhat disturbs the flow and character development.
In the same line of thought, the casting came in as a surprise. The much missed Michel Serrault delivers erudite Decambrais pretty well, but others are blatantly different (both in physical appearance and personality) than their book counterparts (Danglard, Adamsberg's sidekick, was particularly botched in my opinion: even calling him a foil is giving him too much credit). For the most part, I found the acting to be generally bland and uninspiring.
Of course, it's impossible for a movie to be made as a carbon copy of a book (and then, such a thing could turn out bad). Minor edits to the plot line and the look of the actors are things that can be forgiven, at least up to a certain point. What really kills the movie in my opinion is how it turns the unique style of Vargas's writing in a run-of-the-mill thriller. Before being about a police officer who runs after a bad guy, Vargas's novels are about the psychological depth of her characters, particularly Adamsberg. In the movie, Adamsberg is a bland cop whose distinguishing feature is his need of a woman at night to be able to make progress in the case.
Overall, "Pars vite et reviens tard" is a disappointing movie for those who read the book. For others, it could pass as a decent police thriller, although the average acting and flow issues make it less interesting. I would warn those people though not to judge Vargas's novels on this adaptation, as it would be a big mistake.
At its core, "Pars vite et reviens tard" (translated as "Have mercy on us all" in English) is a not-so-traditional police thriller in which we follow Commissaire Jean-Baptiste Adamsberg as he tries to catch a mysterious murderer who makes it seem as if the plague kills his victims. The general storyline is followed in the movie, but most of the finer points have been modified; arguably to make the story more accessible to people who haven't read the book. Indeed, there are lots of details in the book and it would be impossible to include everything. Still, they made some very odd changes that somewhat disturbs the flow and character development.
In the same line of thought, the casting came in as a surprise. The much missed Michel Serrault delivers erudite Decambrais pretty well, but others are blatantly different (both in physical appearance and personality) than their book counterparts (Danglard, Adamsberg's sidekick, was particularly botched in my opinion: even calling him a foil is giving him too much credit). For the most part, I found the acting to be generally bland and uninspiring.
Of course, it's impossible for a movie to be made as a carbon copy of a book (and then, such a thing could turn out bad). Minor edits to the plot line and the look of the actors are things that can be forgiven, at least up to a certain point. What really kills the movie in my opinion is how it turns the unique style of Vargas's writing in a run-of-the-mill thriller. Before being about a police officer who runs after a bad guy, Vargas's novels are about the psychological depth of her characters, particularly Adamsberg. In the movie, Adamsberg is a bland cop whose distinguishing feature is his need of a woman at night to be able to make progress in the case.
Overall, "Pars vite et reviens tard" is a disappointing movie for those who read the book. For others, it could pass as a decent police thriller, although the average acting and flow issues make it less interesting. I would warn those people though not to judge Vargas's novels on this adaptation, as it would be a big mistake.
read the book first before you judge the film.......
ronny-ferrat4 June 2007
I just read the book, a refreshing thriller, unfortunately i didn't get hold of the DVD yet, but, give the film a chance before you judge. Remember: Quite often, good books are turned into bad films and vice versa......... Fred Vargas has given proof of her ability to write unconventional, but nevertheless interesting books, alas, she is definitely not responsible for what happens to her writing, once she has sold the rights, I mean Adamsberg is not Harry Potter........ But still she is doing fine, her books are very entertaining,and what even counts more is that they add new life to an otherwise rather mature genre.
Riddle without suspense
baunacholi-861598 February 2021
Ok I get it. Taking inspiration from medieval and religion is fascinating. A mystery with signs and symbols is probably answering some of our primal fears, superstition or reminds us of childhood fairytales. But it should be done in an innovative way, should be suspenseful and thrilling. ideally aesthetically convincing or with some emotional connection which invites you to follow and care about the Protagonist ... but no, not here, not for me.
A Plague On Both Your Houses
writers_reign27 December 2007
Warning: Spoilers
Yet another entertaining policier from France and one of the last films made by the late and very much lamented Michel Serrault, which would be reason enough to see it but as it turns out that reason is superfluous because the film stands on its own two feet as an excellent thriller with an unusual storyline which begins with mysterious signs painted on doorways and embraces the introduction into Paris of bubonic plague to which no one is immune least of all cop Lucas Belvaux, taking a break from directing to play second lead here. Olivier Gourmet is a modern version of the old Town Crier - and though I go to Paris several times each year I've yet to see one, although that doesn't mean they don't exist - who collects letters daily and then reads them out publicly, unaware that they are being 'treated' with the plague virus. The mystery, of course, is Who and Why and we get there in the end but not before a well-balanced mixture of the cerebral and physical such as the sequence where a suspect escapes on roller blades and is pursued on foot and by car or the linking of the cerebral in the shape of Michel Serrault and the physical represented by Marie Gillain - in her third film in the salles this week - who almost chokes him to death before herself being pursued underneath the supports of a bridge from which she eventually plunges into the Seine. All in all a very satisfactory thriller.
A Solid and Classy French Thriller
claudio_carvalho1 January 2009
Warning: Spoilers
In Paris, many citizens go to the precinct since the doors of their apartments have been sprayed with a 4 and the letters "clt". When a dweller is found mysteriously dead in his apartment, Detective Jean-Baptiste Adamsberg (José Garcia) and his partner Danglard (Lucas Belvaux) investigate the case and discover that plague may have killed the victim. Meanwhile, in the center of Paris, the former actor Joss Le Guern (Olivier Gourmet) survives reading advertisements in a square for the public; when he receives weird messages about an outbreak of plague that is coming to Paris, the former professor Hervé Decambrais (Michel Serrault) requests the warnings and goes to the library to research the meaning of the text, where he meets Adamsberg. Together they find that a maniac is killing people using flees contaminated by rats and spreading the disease in the city; without any clue, the police force do not have how to avoid the panic in Paris.
"Pars Vite et Reviens Tard" is a solid and classy French thriller with an original and engaging story; excellent directions and screenplay that succeed in developing several characters and situation in only 116 minutes running time; magnificent performances, highlighting the veteran Michel Serrault; and awesome music score. This movie is absolutely underrated in IMDb with only 5.4/10. My vote is eight.
Title (Brazil): "Sinais da Morte" ("Signs of the Death")
"Pars Vite et Reviens Tard" is a solid and classy French thriller with an original and engaging story; excellent directions and screenplay that succeed in developing several characters and situation in only 116 minutes running time; magnificent performances, highlighting the veteran Michel Serrault; and awesome music score. This movie is absolutely underrated in IMDb with only 5.4/10. My vote is eight.
Title (Brazil): "Sinais da Morte" ("Signs of the Death")
A very special film: Slow and methodical.
michaelj1081 December 2010
Warning: Spoilers
The story is taken from a novel in a series by Fred Vargas. Inspector Adamsberg figures in most, but not all of those novels, each of which has an odd plot. I felt that I knew Adamsberg from the several novels, six in all. José Garcia is perfect. Adamsberg is vague, lonely, uncommunicative, and – at times – brilliant. He would be an irritating fellow to work with or for. Only his lieutenant Adrien Danglard has the patience and persistence to put up with his eccentricities, one of which is an inability to remember people's names, including his subordinates and colleagues. Perhaps the author intends this feature to indicate his unwillingness to commit to others. Adamsberg is at least as remote and annoying as Sherlock Holmes, but in different ways.
The film makes the local community a character in the story. The Bar Viking, the plaza, the boarding house, the regulars all add to the texture of the story, and to some degree determine events. There are chases for those who must see movement and color on the screen to stay tuned, one over rooftops and another on roller skates. There is a shoot out for those who must have noise, though it seemed to add nothing to either plot or character.
But the center of the film is Adamsberg, brooding and intense without saying a word very often. It is an unusual approach these days to rely on acting, rather than shouting, guns, or special effects, but it works. Garcia is compassionate and dedicated, but he is also guarded and vulnerable. He makes mistakes, but presses on. He does not defy authority, but occasionally asserts it slowly and steadily.
When Adamsberg's famed intuition does occur, he is as confused by it, as the viewer is, but he works through it, as do we along with him.
I hope the film leads to more the Vargas books being filmed and that José Garcia plays Adamsberg again, and again. This film was the last credit for the great Michel Serrault. He gave us much to think about over the years and a great deal of pleasure, too.
The film makes the local community a character in the story. The Bar Viking, the plaza, the boarding house, the regulars all add to the texture of the story, and to some degree determine events. There are chases for those who must see movement and color on the screen to stay tuned, one over rooftops and another on roller skates. There is a shoot out for those who must have noise, though it seemed to add nothing to either plot or character.
But the center of the film is Adamsberg, brooding and intense without saying a word very often. It is an unusual approach these days to rely on acting, rather than shouting, guns, or special effects, but it works. Garcia is compassionate and dedicated, but he is also guarded and vulnerable. He makes mistakes, but presses on. He does not defy authority, but occasionally asserts it slowly and steadily.
When Adamsberg's famed intuition does occur, he is as confused by it, as the viewer is, but he works through it, as do we along with him.
I hope the film leads to more the Vargas books being filmed and that José Garcia plays Adamsberg again, and again. This film was the last credit for the great Michel Serrault. He gave us much to think about over the years and a great deal of pleasure, too.
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