''Coup de Torchon'' (also known as ''Clean Slate'') is a 1981 French

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

directed by

Bertrand Tavernier Bertrand Tavernier (25 April 1941 – 25 March 2021) was a French director, screenwriter, actor and producer. Life and career Tavernier was born in Lyon, France, the son of Geneviève (née Dumond) and René Tavernier, a publicist and writer, s ...

and adapted from Jim Thompson's 1964 novel '' Pop. 1280''. The film changes the novel's setting from an

American Southern The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural List of regions of the United States#Official regions of the United Stat ...

town to a small town in

French West Africa French West Africa (french: Afrique-Occidentale française, ) was a federation of eight French colonial territories in West Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan (now Mali), French Guinea (now Guinea), Ivory Coast, Upper Volta (now Burki ...

. The film had 2,199,309 admissions in France and was the 16th most attended film of the year. It received the

Prix Méliès The French Syndicate of Cinema Critics (french: Syndicat français de la critique de cinéma et des films de télévision) has, each year since 1946, awarded a prize (":fr:Prix de la critique, Prix de la critique", English: "Critics Prize"), the P ...

from the French Syndicate of Cinema Critics as the best French film of 1981.

Plot

In a little town in

in 1938, Lucien Cordier is the only policeman. Unable or unwilling to impose his authority, he is treated with scorn by everybody. His sexy wife Huguette has brought a lover, Nono, to live openly with them, claiming he is her brother. Cordier fancies the mischievous young bride Rose, but lets her brutal husband beat her in the street unchallenged. The head of the timber company, Vanderbrouck, daily insults him for all to see. And the bane of his life is a pair of slimy pimps, who flout the law and enjoy humiliating him. It is the pimps that take him to the brink, so he gets on a train to consult his superior Chavasson, who tells him to act forcefully. On the train home is the attractive new teacher in town, Anne, to whom he warms immediately. Once back, he catches the two pimps alone and, after shooting both dead, throws the corpses in the river. When Chavasson learns of this, he rushes down to question Cordier, who says it was in effect Chavasson who killed them. Having outwitted his boss and removed his prime tormentors, Cordier starts on the others who have made his life a misery. Rose's husband, like the pimps, is shot dead and Vanderbrouck is dropped in a privy. When Rose’s husband’s servant brings his master's body back to the house, Cordier kills the servant as well. Catching Nono peeping at Anne in the shower, he beats him up in the street. Then he steals the money which his wife had been saving up in order to leave him and goes off to see Rose. Huguette and Nono, reckoning that he is going to abscond with Rose and the money, storm round to Rose's and in self-defence Rose shoots both dead. Cordier gives her the money and tells her to get away fast. All he has left in life is Anne, to whom he confesses his general malaise and specific crimes. She is ready to accept him but he says he is now incapable of love. In the closing shot, he is alone under a tree caressing a revolver.

Cast

Philippe Noiret Philippe Noiret (; 1 October 1930 – 23 November 2006) was a French film actor. Life and career Noiret was born in Lille, France, the son of Lucy (Heirman) and Pierre Noiret, a clothing company representative. He was an indifferent student and ...

as Lucien Cordier *

Isabelle Huppert Isabelle Anne Madeleine Huppert (; born 16 March 1953) is a French actress. Described as "one of the best actresses in the world", she is known for her portrayals of cold and disdainful characters devoid of morality. She is the recipient of sev ...

as Rose *

Jean-Pierre Marielle Jean-Pierre Marielle (12 April 1932 – 24 April 2019) was a French actor. He appeared in more than a hundred films in which he played very diverse roles, from a banal citizen ('' Les Galettes de Pont-Aven''), to a World War II hero (''Les Milles ...

as Le Peron and his brother *

Stéphane Audran Stéphane Audran (born Colette Suzanne Dacheville; 8 November 1932 – 27 March 2018) was a French actress. She was known for her performances in award-winning films such as ''The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie'' (1972) and ''Babette's Feast'' ...

as Huguette Cordier *

Eddy Mitchell Claude Moine (; born 3 July 1942), known professionally as Eddy Mitchell, is a French singer and actor. He began his career in the late 1950s, with the group Les Chaussettes Noires (The Black Socks). He took the name ''Eddy'' from the American ...

as Nono *

Guy Marchand Guy Marchand (born 22 May 1937) is a French actor, musician and singer. He is best known for his role as fictional private detective Nestor Burma. Selected filmography * 1962: '' The Longest Day'' as an extra (Uncredited) * 1975: '' Cousin ...

as Marcel Chavasson * Irène Skobline as Anne, the teacher * Michel Beaune as Vanderbrouck *

Jean Champion Jean Champion (9 March 1917 – 23 May 2001) was a French film actor. He appeared in 60 films between 1962 and 1996. Partial filmography * ''Cléo from 5 to 7'' (1962) - Le patron du café (uncredited) * '' The Longest Day'' (1962) - Frenc ...

as Priest * Victor Garrivier as Mercaillou *

Gérard Hernandez Julio Gerardo "Gérard" Hernandez (born 20 January 1933) is a Spanish-born French actor. Biography Hernandez was born in Valladolid, Spain and was naturalized French only in 1975. He is mostly famous for his mustache and for having voiced seve ...

as Leonelli *

Abdoulaye Diop Abdoulaye Diop (born 1965) is a Malian diplomat who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mali from 2014 to 2017 and again from 2021 onwards. Previously he was Mali's Ambassador to the United States, appointed to that position in 2003. Biog ...

as Fête Nat * Daniel Langlet as Paulo *

François Perrot François Perrot (26 February 1924 – 20 January 2019)Raymond Hermantier Raymond Hermantier (13 January 1924 – 11 February 2005) was a French actor, born in Lyon, France as Raymond Maroutian. Raymond Hermantier aspired to act since the age of 17. His training was interrupted by World War II during which he served i ...

as Blind man * Mamadou Dioumé as Mamadou * Samba Mané as Vendredi

Reception

The film had 2,199,309 admissions in France and was the 16th most attended film of the year. It received the

from the French Syndicate of Cinema Critics and 10 César nominations but did not win any. It received mixed reviews from U.S. and U.K. critics. ''The New York Times'' praised the performances and "the meticulousness and conviction on display here" but also added that the film "seems strangely lacking in overall momentum and direction."

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

called it "a cruel intellectual joke played on its characters" and said the film "left me cold, unmoved and uninvolved." ''Time Out'' said "this eccentric, darkly comic look at a series of bizarre murders is stylishly well-crafted, and thoroughly entertaining" and "embellished with black wit and an elegant visual sense." ''TV Guide'' called it a "stylish, twisted black comedy... with as dead-on an evocation of a torpid, seedy backwater as anyone has achieved on screen."

Awards and honors

French Syndicate of Cinema Critics The French Syndicate of Cinema Critics (french: Syndicat français de la critique de cinéma et des films de télévision) has, each year since 1946, awarded a prize (" Prix de la critique", English: "Critics Prize"), the Prix Méliès, to the be ...

(France) **Won: Best Film (tied with ''

Garde à vue ''Garde à Vue'' (also known as ''The Inquisitor'') is a 1981 French psychological crime drama directed by Claude Miller and starring Romy Schneider, Michel Serrault, Lino Ventura and Guy Marchand. It is based on the 1979 British novel ''Brainwas ...

'') *

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

(USA) **Nominated: Best Foreign Language Film *

César Awards The César Award is the national film award of France. It is delivered in the ' ceremony and was first awarded in 1976. The nominations are selected by the members of twelve categories of filmmaking professionals and supported by the French Min ...

(France) **Nominated: Best Actor – Leading Role (Philippe Noiret) **Nominated: Best Actor – Supporting Role (Jean-Pierre Marielle) **Nominated: Best Actor – Supporting Role (Eddy Mitchell) **Nominated: Best Actress – Leading Role (Isabelle Huppert) **Nominated: Best Actress – Supporting Role (Stéphane Audran) **Nominated: Best Director (Bertrand Tavernier) **Nominated: Best Editing (Armand Psenny) **Nominated: Best Film **Nominated: Best Production Design (Alexandre Trauner) **Nominated: Best Writing (Jean Aurenche and Bertrand Tavernier)

References

External links

* *
''Coup de Torchon''
an essay by Michael Dare at the

Criterion Collection The Criterion Collection, Inc. (or simply Criterion) is an American home-video distribution company that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films." Criterion serves film and media scholars, cinep ...