Désiré Landru

The story of the Parisian "Modrovous" Désiré Landru was one of the biggest criminal cases of the first half of the 20th century and occupied journalists not only from France, but also from all over Europe for many years. It was the subject of conversations in cafes and pubs, even in the most remote corners. Mothers terrified their teenage daughters with it, and it was only events of World War II that pushed this whole history into oblivion. It is an excellent basis for a dramatic story, which could be very well exploited even in television adaptation, and it is in its own way an art that Pierre Boutron managed to create such a perfectly forgettable film. The actors, without exception, lack charisma, the direction is painfully unremarkable, and the script is uninteresting. If you add the obviously limited budget to this, the disaster is complete. Overall impression: 35%. (01/23/2008)