''Police'' is a 1985 French romantic neo noir

crime drama film In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...

directed by

Maurice Pialat Maurice Pialat (; 31 August 1925 – 11 January 2003) was a French film director, screenwriter and actor known for the rigorous and unsentimental style of his films. His work is often described as " realist",

and starring

Gérard Depardieu Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu, CQ (, , ; born 27 December 1948) is a French actor, filmmaker, businessman and vineyard owner since 1989 who is one of the most prolific thespians in film history having completed over 250 films since 1967 alm ...

Sophie Marceau Sophie Marceau (; born Sophie Danièle Sylvie Maupu, 17 November 1966) is a French actress. As a teenager, she achieved popularity with her debut films ''La Boum'' (1980) and ''La Boum 2'' (1982), receiving a César Award for Most Promising Act ...

, and

Sandrine Bonnaire Sandrine Bonnaire (; born 31 May 1967) is a French actress, film director and screenwriter who has appeared in more than 40 films. She won the César Award for Most Promising Actress for '' À Nos Amours'' (1983), the César Award for Best Actre ...

. Written by

Catherine Breillat Catherine Breillat (; born 13 July 1948) is a French filmmaker, novelist and professor of auteur cinema at the European Graduate School. In the film business for over 40 years, Catherine Breillat chooses to normalize previously taboo subjects in ...

, the film is about a moody, jaded police detective investigating a drug ring who falls for a mysterious woman and is drawn into a shady and dangerous scheme. The film had 1,830,970 admissions in France.

Plot

In the Belleville district of Paris, the widowed Mangin is a cynical and tough police detective working to smash a drug ring of Tunisian brothers. He arrests and brutally interrogates Noria, the girlfriend of one of the gang who is in jail. Though she gives him no useful information, her beauty and her tears touch his heart. She agrees to go with him in a foursome to a disco. When another gang member is in hospital with knife wounds, he gives Noria the key to his hideout. There she finds a bag of money and heroin, which she removes. When the remaining gang members put heavy pressure on Noria, who denies all knowledge of the theft, she offers herself to Mangin. He is happy to accept her as a lover, even a partner, but says she will not live long if she does not gives back the cash and the drugs. She fetches the bag for Mangin, who takes it to the bar where the Tunisians hang out. They are delighted, promising to help him in return. Though he has done this to save Noria's life, and has declared his love for her, she leaves him.

Cast

as Louis Vincent Mangin *

as Noria *

Richard Anconina Richard Anconina (; born 28 January 1953) is a French actor. He won the César Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1983, and for Best Actor in 1989. Filmography * 1977 : ''Comment se faire réformer'' directed by Philippe Clair * 1978 : ''Les Ré ...

as Lambert * Pascale Rocard as Marie Vedret *

as Lydie * Frank Karoui as René * Jonathan Leïna as Simon *

Jacques Mathou Jacques Mathou is a French actor, best known for his appearance in ''Delicatessen''. Filmography * 1985 : ''Tranches de vie'' * 1986 : ''Betty Blue'', Bob * 1987 : ''L'été en pente douce'' * 1987 : '' Si le soleil ne revenait pas'' * 1989 : '' ...

as Gauthier * Bernard Fuzellier as Nez cassé * Bentahar Meaachou as Claude *

Yann Dedet Yann Dedet (born 25 January 1946) is a French film editor and actor. Dedet has been working in film editing since the early 1970s. He often worked for film directors François Truffaut, Maurice Pialat and Nicole Garcia. His work includes more th ...

as Dédé *

Artus de Penguern Artus de Penguern (13 March 1957 – 14 May 2013) was a French director, writer and actor of Bretons, Breton descent. On stage Filmography References External links

* 1957 births French film directors 2013 deaths French people ...

as Inspector

Accolades

The film was nominated for a César for Best Editing in

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

, as well as a Best Actor nomination for Depardieu. Depardieu also won the Award for Best Actor from the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...

in 1985 for his performance of the conflicted Mangin.

References

External links

* * {{Maurice Pialat 1985 films Neo-noir French neo-noir films French crime drama films 1980s French-language films Films directed by Maurice Pialat Romantic crime films