''Le Corps de mon ennemi'' (also known as ''Body of My Enemy'' ) is a 1976 French crime film directed by

Henri Verneuil Henri Verneuil (; born Ashot Malakian; 15 October 1920 – 11 January 2002) was a French-Armenian playwright and filmmaker, who made a successful career in France. He was nominated for Oscar and Palme d'Or awards, and won Locarno International ...

Plot

After François Leclercq seduces the young and rich Gilberte Beaumont-Liégard, she introduces him to her family. Through the budding relationship with her in-laws, Leclercq is able to assimilate into the local

upper class Upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of people who hold the highest social status, usually are the wealthiest members of class society, and wield the greatest political power. According to this view, the upper class is gen ...

of his hometown, Cornai. A friend of Gilberte's father, Raphaël Di Massa hires him as manager of his new

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

, "Number One". The oblivious

parvenu A ''parvenu'' is a person who is a relative newcomer to a high-ranking socioeconomic class. The word is borrowed from the French language; it is the past participle of the verb ''parvenir'' (to reach, to arrive, to manage to do something). Origi ...

Leclercq eventually discovers that "Number One" is actually a cover-up for Raphaël Di Massa's

illegal drug trade The illegal drug trade or drug trafficking is a global black market dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of prohibited drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs throug ...

. Following a dispute between Di Massa and Leclercq, the gun of the latter is stolen and used in the murder of a local football star. An orchestrated

miscarriage of justice A miscarriage of justice occurs when a grossly unfair outcome occurs in a criminal or civil proceeding, such as the conviction and punishment of a person for a crime they did not commit. Miscarriages are also known as wrongful convictions. Inno ...

puts Leclercq in prison, despite his innocence. Seven years later, he returns to Cornai and discovers that it wasn't Di Massa, but Gilberte's father Jean-Baptiste Beaumont-Liégard who ran the drug operation during Leclercq's employment. In an act of retaliation, Leclercq turns Beaumont-Liégard's accomplices against him. As Jean-Baptiste Beaumont-Liégard is executed, Leclercq leaves the city satisfied with his revenge.

Cast

Jean-Paul Belmondo Jean-Paul Charles Belmondo (; 9 April 19336 September 2021) was a French actor and producer. Initially associated with the New Wave of the 1960s, he was a major French film star for several decades from the 1960s onward. His best known credits ...

: François Leclercq *

Bernard Blier Bernard Blier (11 January 1916 – 29 March 1989) was a French character actor. He was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where his father, a researcher at the Pasteur Institute, was posted at the time. Life and career His rotund features and ...

: Jean-Baptiste Beaumont-Liégard *

Marie-France Pisier Marie-France Pisier (10 May 194424 April 2011) was a French actress, screenwriter, and director. She appeared in numerous films of the French New Wave and twice earned the national César Award for Best Supporting Actress. Early life Pisier was ...

: Gilberte Beaumont-Liégard, Jean-Baptiste's daughter *

François Perrot François Perrot (26 February 1924 – 20 January 2019)Daniel Ivernel: Victor Verbruck, the mayor * Claude Brosset: Oscar * Yvonne Gaudeau: Madame Beaumont-Liégard * René Lefèvre: Pierre Leclercq, François' father *

Michel Beaune Michel Beaune (1933–1990) was a French actor. Filmography *1960: '' Trapped by Fear'' - Un ami de Paul (uncredited) *1961: ''Les godelureaux'' *1964: '' Backfire'' - Daniel *1970: '' The Confession'' - L'avocat *1970: '' The Time to Die'' ...

: a childhood friend of François * Nicole Garcia: Hélène Mauve/Duquesne * Élisabeth Margoni: Karine Lechard * Jacques David: Prosecutor Torillon *

Françoise Bertin Françoise Bertin (23 September 1925 – 26 October 2014) was a French actress. She appeared in over 125 films since 1961. Among these were five films directed by Alain Resnais: ''Last Year at Marienbad'', '' Muriel'', '' The War Is Over'', '' ...

: René's wife

Score

Francis Lai Francis Albert Lai (; 26 April 19327 November 2018) was a French composer, noted for his film scores. He won the 1970 Oscar for Best Music, Original Score and the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score for the film ''Love Story''. The so ...

's score was released by WIP Records in 1976. # Le Corps De Mon Ennemi (2:25) # Je Me Souviens De Ce Temps Là (1:06) # Je L'Aime, Elle M'Aimait (2:58) # Ma Ville À Perpétuité (1:55) # Magic's Power (3:19) # Mademoiselle (1:29) # Et Puis Tu M'As Oublié (0:52) # Your Hair In My Eyes (3:47) # Number One (3:36) # Je Me Souviens De Ce Temps Là (2:33) # Ma Ville, Mes Amours (1:52) # Jack Pot (3:21) # Je Ne Suis Pas Des Tiens (1:04) # La Valse Des Souvenirs (2:25) # Au Creux De La Nuit (0:56) # Le Corps De Mon Ennemi (2:25)

References

External links

*
''Body of My Enemy''
at Le Film Guide * * * {{Michel Audiard 1976 films 1970s French-language films 1976 crime films French gangster films Films directed by Henri Verneuil French films about revenge Films with screenplays by Michel Audiard Films scored by Francis Lai Films based on French novels Columbia Pictures films 1970s French films