THE CRIME IS MINE

Director: François Ozon

2023, 104min., NR

Language: French with English subtitles

Screenwriter: François Ozon

 

Only eclectic filmmaker François Ozon (8 Women, Swimming Pool) could create a hugely popular hit with his French screwball crime/comedy, set in 1930s Paris, that he reveals “is ultimately about the sisterhood of women.” The backdrop of #MeToo animates this witty story of an aspiring actress (Nadia Tereszkiewicz) who is molested by a well-known producer – and put on trial for his murder. She needs all the cards in her favor, with her unemployed best friend as her lawyer, and her lurking suspicion that confession might be a boost for her career. A “Knives Out” mystery à la française, with glittering images of the City of Light and a scene-stealing performance by Isabelle Huppert, as a former star who claims to be the real killer. “Ozon, as ever, is not just having fun. He is also making mischief with sexual politics of the plot.”  – Anthony Lane, The New Yorker.