This Man Must Die (1969)

A man asserts himself within the life of an actress he believes is somehow responsible for his son's death.

Director:

Claude Chabrol

Writers:

Nicholas Blake (novel), Claude Chabrol (dialogue)

Stars:

Michel Duchaussoy, Caroline Cellier, Jean Yanne

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michel Duchaussoy	...	Charles Thénier
Caroline Cellier	...	Hélène Lanson
Jean Yanne	...	Paul Decourt
Anouk Ferjac	...	Jeanne Decourt
Marc Di Napoli	...	Philippe Decourt
Louise Chevalier	...	Madame Levenes
Guy Marly	...	Jacques Ferrand
Lorraine Rainer	...	Anna Ferrand
Dominique Zardi	...	Le premier inspecteur de police
Stéphane Di Napoli	...	Michel Thénier
Raymone	...	La mère de Paul
Michel Charrel	...	Le ferrailleur
France Girard
Bernard Papineau	...	Le policier
Robert Rondo	...	Le garagiste

Storyline

Single father obsessed with murdering the hit&run driver who killed his only child, poses as a screenwriter to get close to an actress who was in the death car. He feels fully prepared to kill the pretty young woman if she was the driver, but as his knowledge of her family grows, so does his empathy for them.

---

Plot Keywords:

driver | actress | revenge | death of son | based on novel | 

---

Taglines:

I don't know who he is or what he looks like or where he lives. But I am going to find him...and kill him.

---

Genres:

Drama | Thriller

---

Certificate:

GP

Details

Country:

France Italy

Language:

French

Release Date:

20 October 1970 (USA)

Also Known As:

This Man Must Die

Filming Locations:

Argol, Finistère, France

Company Credits

Production Co:

Les Films de la Boétie,Rizzoli Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film is based on a British novel of the 1930s written by the poet C. Day Lewis, under the pseudonym Nicholas Blake and is one of several novels by him to feature as its hero the brilliant amateur sleuth Nigel Strangeways. This adaptation, in addition to moving the action to modern-day France, entirely leaves out this leading character (or any new French character equivalent to him).

---

Connections

Referenced in Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004)

---

Soundtracks

La terre
By Dominique Zardi

User Reviews

The House of Hatred and Revenge

A car runs over the boy Michel Thenier while he is crossing the street in his calm village in Bretane, and the hit and run driver flees without any witness. His grieving father Charles Thenier (Michel Duchaussoy) becomes obsessed to find the reckless driver that murdered his only son to kill him and spends his time writing his diary and running his own investigation in garages and junkyards. One day, he learns by chance that the actress Helene Lanson (Caroline Cellier) might be the responsible for the death of Michel. Charles travels to Paris posing as screenplay writer, introduces himself using his pseudonym of Marc Andrieux and seduces Helene with the intention of killing her. However, Helene tells that her family is from Brittany and her brother-in-law Paul Decourt (Jean Yanne) owns a garage in Quimper. When Helene invites Charles to travel to her sister's house to know her family, Charles finds that Paul is a despicable man with a disease in the intestine, hated by his family and his own son Phillippe Decourt (Marc Di Napoli) wants to kill him.

"Que la Bête Meure" a.k.a. "This Man Must Die" is an ambiguous story of hatred and revenge with an open conclusion where it is not clear who really killed the detestable Paul Decourt. The odyssey of Charles to find the killer proves that he is a manipulative and Machiavellian man; therefore it is impossible to conclude what is his final destination. One point that intrigues me and may be a clue to the truth is when Paul calls Marc by Charles, when they are preparing to sail. Neither Claude Chabrol nor Charles Thenier would be capable to commit such mistake and then in the boat Charles tells to Paul that the entertaining is just beginning. This sequence corroborates with the deduction of the detective and associated to the profile of Charles that should be incapable to neglect his journal may indicate that Phillippe is really innocent, but I can not assure that my interpretation is correct. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): Not Available