Directed by:
Mathieu KassovitzCinematography:
Thierry ArbogastComposer:
Bruno CoulaisCast:
Jean Reno, Vincent Cassel, Nadia Fares, Dominique Sanda, Karim Belkhadra, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Didier Flamand, François Levantal, Francine Bergé (more)Plots(1)
When Commissaire Pierre Niemans (Jean Reno), France’s leading serial killer investigator, is called to investigate a grisly murder, he enters a world of secrets, lies and unthinkable horrors. The dead, whose hands and eyes have been removed, are clues to a terrible tradition the killer can no longer bear. Each murder means something more; each victim, a guilty conspirator in a grand immoral experiment. Filled with blood-chilling suspense, twisted turns and breathtaking locations, this tense thriller has the style, action and intelligence to keep you wondering what’s really happening right up until the shocking conclusion. (Via Vision Entertainment)
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Reviews (10)
Awesome, and I regret putting this film off for so long. Crimson Rivers is a very intelligent, chilling and suspenseful thriller led by the excellent Jean Reno and Vincent Cassel. Those who like movies where the killer is only revealed at the end will not regret it. The resemblance to David Fincher's Se7en is almost palpable, but not offensive, instead competing strongly due to the very impressive treatment of the corpses. 80%
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The subject matter is very enticing, the actors are excellent, the atmosphere is as sharp as a French guillotine for most of the time and, most importantly, the entire first half is the most stylish, chilling and impressive thriller since Fincher's Se7en. But, as much as the beginning thrilled me and the amazing atmosphere, together with the disgusting murders, burrowed deep under my skin, the second half, with its inconsistency and steep decline of creativity, made me feel like a little boy who has believed in Santa Claus all his childhood and finally learns that everything is completely different. Yet I might have forgiven everything if the filmmakers had come up with a quality and meaningful conclusion that would have put me back in the right mood and left me with my mouth open least as much as the great opening. Alas, what finally happened on the screen, I would like to cut it out of the film for good, burn it and throw the ashes into a lake somewhere, because it literally brought the whole thing and its strongly depressing atmosphere down a peg. I can't say that The Crimson Rivers a is a disappointment, but I'm very annoyed with how the filmmakers managed to screw up such a good film with such excellent actors. At least it showed once again how unmatched the aforementioned Se7en is in the genre.
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A perfectly dark atmosphere that can only be maintained until the evidence starts to emerge. Jean Reno and Vincent Cassel are great on their own, but even the chase with the killer through the apartment really tests your nerves. And yet as it starts to incorporate all the mystery elements everything starts to creak and groain, and after the snowy finale you end up with a bitter taste in your mouth.
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It's not bad... In my opinion, Mathieu Kassovitz has managed to very decently dilute the classic action style of decent American editing and the classic French conversational detective story, whilst also not feeling as primly funny as the director of the second film, Olivier Dahan, when trying to evoke a dark atmosphere. Jean Reno and his partner Vincent Cassel get enough space, and Vincent only disappointed me with one thing... he is not as sympathetic as his book counterpart. And that is actually the problem of The Crimson Rivers. Compared to the book, they don't have even half the tension and secrets, the trick with murders comes too soon, and the characters spew the entire deduction at us in confusion in the middle of a car chase. Well, a film is not a book, we all know that, but the adaptation to the script just has a lot of issues... and the "spectacular" and amateurish finale is proof of that. In the book, the awkwardness is somehow lost, but here it hits us over the head mainly thanks to the absolute overacting by Nadia Fares... If you haven’t read the book, you will like The Crimson Rivers a lot, and if you have, you will be somewhat disappointed. But formally, everything is completely fine.
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The first installment of a loose trilogy of crime thrillers associated with Jean Reno as an investigator of brutal crimes is still a relatively decent film, though the weaknesses that sank the following two sequels are already apparent. The screenplay is underdeveloped and clearly prioritizes flashy visuals and shocking revelations over logical consistency, taking evident inspiration from successful American thrillers, notably Se7en. The attempt to emulate Fincher's directorial style is evident in several specific scenes. The result is an uneven film with an awkward ending, but it still has several audience-appealing moments and a dark, though inconsistent, atmosphere. Overall impression: 55%.
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