The Violent People

An uncompromising straightforward neo western from Normandy about a despotic clan father who solves things in his own way and in and old way Gabin's masterfully minimalist charismatic performance goes beyond the above-average genre, and on the contrary, it is ruined by horribly unfit music, along with the lack of gradation of the final third. If the film makers did not want to push the central genre conflict further, then the obvious choice was to enhance tension and paranoia in the family. But as it is, it does fade away to much. (02/09/2018)

The film works thanks to the character of the uncompromising patriarchal farmer, who seems to have come straight out of neorealist novels about the Italian South from the mid-19th century. The farmer's character stands and falls with the performance of the charismatic Jean Gabin, who doesn't even need to speak - his gaze says it all. Without his involvement, it would be just an average detective story with a slightly naive and unreliable script. By the way, a few years ago, a remake was made in France under the title Joseph with Pierre Mondy in the lead role. Although he is a quality actor who has been at the forefront of French acting for decades, he simply cannot compare to Jean Gabin in terms of type, and overall the remake can be considered only half as impressive. Everything else in the film is subordinate to the central character and is essentially not worth further analysis. Overall impression: 75%. (11/03/2013)

Excellent! Master Gabin is once again in remarkable form and we have no choice but to admire his acting. A simple farmer with a sense of justice would prefer to solve problems amicably, or with a more forceful agreement spiced with a lesson and ending with a manly handshake. It's just that if you can't... Well... Even simple farmers have a rifle hidden somewhere. Horse is a quiet, yet haunting film that could not have been made anywhere else but France. Some scenes (the cattle massacre, the finale) I will never forget. As with the moodily similar Delon's The Burned Barns - four and a half stars. (11/14/2010)