Masques (1987)

Director:

Claude Chabrol

Writers:

Odile Barski &
Claude Chabrol

Release Date:

11 February 1987 (France)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime

Tagline:

France's master of stylish and witty suspense presents his delightfully dark and hauntingly humorous game of cat and mouse

Plot:

Roland Wolf wants to write a book about a TV game-show host, the hail-fellow-well-met Christian Legagneur...

Awards:

3 nominations

Cast

Philippe Noiret	...	Christian Legagneur
Robin Renucci	...	Roland Wolf
Bernadette Lafont	...	La masseuse / The masseuse
Monique Chaumette	...	Colette, la secrétaire / The secretary
Anne Brochet	...	Catherine
Roger Dumas	...	Manu
Pierre-François Dumeniaud	...	Max
Pierre Nougaro	...	Gustave
Renée Dennsy	...	Émilie
Yvonne Décade	...	Antoinette
Blanche Ariel	...	Rosette
René Marjac	...	Maurice
Paul Vally	...	Henry
Denise Pezzani	...	Mme Lemonier
Pierre Hisch	...	M. Loury
Michel Dupuy	...	L'assistant
Henri Attal	...	Le surveillant
Dominique Zardi	...	Totor
François Lafont	...	L'homme à la blouse

Directed by
Claude Chabrol

Writing credits
Odile Barski		&
Claude Chabrol

Produced by
Marin Karmitz	....	producer

Original Music by
Matthieu Chabrol

Cinematography by
Jean Rabier

Film Editing by
Monique Fardoulis

Production Design by
Françoise Benoît-Fresco

Costume Design by
Magali Fustier-Dray		(as Magali Fustier)

Makeup Department
Josée De Luca	....	makeup artist: Mrs. Lafont
Sylvie Mathevet	....	hair stylist
Jacques Moisant	....	hair stylist: Mrs. Lafont
Jacky Reynal	....	makeup artist (as Jackie Reynal)

Production Management
Pierre-Olivier Baudin	....	assistant unit manager
Fabienne Faudot-Bel	....	unit manager
Catherine Lapoujade	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Michel Dupuy	....	assistant director
Alain Wermus	....	assistant director

Art Department
Dominique Beaucamps	....	assistant decorator
Pierre Galliard	....	property master

Sound Department
Jean-Pierre Duret	....	sound assistant
Jean-Jacques Ferran	....	sound assistant
Jean-Pierre Fénié	....	sound assistant
Maurice Gilbert	....	sound mixer
André Naudin	....	foley artist
François Naudin	....	assistant foley artist
Jean-Bernard Thomasson	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Catherine Cabrol	....	still photographer
Jean-Baptiste Dutreix	....	key grip
Maurice Estival	....	best boy gaffer
Jean Fleury	....	best boy gaffer
Olivier Ide	....	assistant camera
Jean-Marc Rabier	....	assistant camera
Dominique Robert	....	grip
Claude Rouxel	....	gaffer
Michel Thiriet	....	camera operator

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Yvette Bonnay	....	costumer
Céline	....	gowns: Mrs. Chaumette
Lolita Lempicka	....	gowns: Mrs. Lafont

Editorial Department
Angela Braga-Mermet	....	assistant editor
Olivier Rossignol	....	assistant editor
Françoise Vuillemin	....	apprentice editor

Music Department
Michel Ganot	....	musical director
Jean-Pierre Pelissier	....	music recordist

Other crew
Aurore Chabrol	....	script supervisor (as Aurore Paquiss)
Florence de Masson	....	apprentice director
Jean-Michel Gageat	....	groupman
Carole Génovès	....	apprentice script
Marguerite Lemarchand	....	production secretary
Cécile Maistre	....	apprentice manager
Catherine Martin	....	canteen
Paulette Materne	....	production administrator
Joseph Schillinger	....	canteen
Eva Simonet	....	press attache

Production Companies

• Films A2
• MK2 Productions

Distributors

• Concorde Filmverleih (1987) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• MK2 Diffusion (1987) (France) (theatrical)
• Concorde Video (2008) (Germany) (DVD) (Claude Chabrol Collection 3)
• Home Vision Entertainment (HVE) (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• MK2 Diffusion (2002) (France) (DVD)
• VCL Video (1988) (West Germany) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Cinékip  grip equipment
• Comédie des Champs Élysées  music recording
• Céline  gowns: Mrs. Chaumette
• D.C. Audiovisuel  sound re-recording
• Les Films Michel François  titles
• Lolita Lempicka  gowns: Mrs. Lafont
• S.I.S.  auditorium
• Transpalux  electrical equipment

Also Known As:

"Masks" - International (English title) (literal title)

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

France

Language:

French

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Norway:12 (original rating) | Sweden:11 | West Germany:12 (f) | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Germany:12 (DVD rating)

Filming Locations:

Senlis, Oise, France

Company:

Films A2

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: (at around 30 mins) In the scene with Catherine sitting outside in the garden, the camera is reflected in her sunglasses.

MASQUES (Claude Chabrol, 1987) ***

Intriguing, somewhat old-fashioned thriller where no one is quite who he seems to be (though the revelations in themselves are hardly astounding); for what it is worth, I had to make do here with a TV-sourced version sporting French subtitles! In any case, the film virtually hinges on Philippe Noiret's excellent central performance as a larger-than-life TV presenter with a weakness for luxury. Evoking Walter Matthau to a striking degree, he manages all of the protagonist's various facets (transmitting in this way his talent for manipulation) – going from the charm he exercises on audiences and collaborators alike, to the tenderness he demonstrates towards his young female charge (whom he ostensibly took on out of compassion after both her parents perished in a car crash), the ruthlessness he eventually adopts in order to achieve his goals, and ultimately the breakdown he suffers 'on air' exposing him for the contemptuous bully he really is.

The plot sees a young reporter apparently approach Noiret for the purposes of writing his biography (he is actually investigating the disappearance of a woman who had been the old man's guest). At the latter's country-house, he meets and is attracted to the girl (leading a sheltered life due to her 'delicate' health), who even reciprocates his feelings – to Noiret's obvious chagrin (incidentally, Chabrol resists making him a lecher since he is only after the heroine's money). Bland Robin Renucci is only adequate as the amateur detective, but Anne Brochet's classical beauty (looking quite a bit like Emmanuelle Beart!) is ideally suited for the rather melancholy girl he determines to save from the evil clutches of her guardian. Also involved is Bernadette Lafont (middle-aged but still looking good and with hair dyed blonde) as a hanger-on at Noiret's estate who professes to tell fortunes.

MASQUES basically resolves itself in a battle-of-wills between Noiret and Renucci (and eventually the former and Brochet, when it finally dawns on her that what the young man – and the lady who went missing – had been telling her all along was true). In its expose' of bourgeois double standards and numerous scenes of carefully-built suspense, then, the film emerges to be extremely typical of its director (as well as being reasonably representative of his vast body of work).