Room of Death (2007)

Two unemployed computer technicians discover 2 million euros next to a dead body in a field of windmills.

Director:

Alfred Lot

Writers:

Alfred Lot, Franck Thilliez (novel)

Stars:

Mélanie Laurent, Éric Caravaca, Gilles Lellouche

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mélanie Laurent	...	Lucie Hennebelle
Éric Caravaca	...	Moreno / Pierre Norman
Gilles Lellouche	...	Sylvain
Jonathan Zaccaï	...	Vigo
Laurence Côte	...	Alex
Céline Sallette	...	Annabelle
Fanny Cottençon	...	La mère de Lucie
Nathalie Richard	...	Raphaelle
Jean-François Stévenin	...	Léon
Stéphane Jobert	...	Raviez
Antoine Oppenheim	...	Colin
Alexandre Carrière	...	Stan
Jean-Pierre Gos	...	Van Boost
Delphine Benattard	...	Nathalie (as Delphine Benattar)
Jacques Herlin	...	Marceau

Storyline

Two unemployed computer technicians discover 2 million euros next to a dead body in a field of windmills. The money that they find deepens their pre-existing dominator-dominated relationship. The next day, a young blind girl is found dead near the site of the discovery and it seems that the stolen money had been intended to pay her ransom. Another child is then kidnapped and the police carry out an investigation, in particular a young sergeant who is fascinated by the tragic event.

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Plot Keywords:

ransom | police | blind girl | female masturbation | policewoman | 

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Genres:

Crime | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Bac Films [France]

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

14 November 2007 (France)

Also Known As:

Room of Death

Filming Locations:

Boulogne-sur-Mer, Pas-de-Calais, France

Company Credits

Production Co:

Produire à Paris, Centre Régional des Ressources Audiovisuelles (CRRAV), CiBy 2000

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Cunar, the man killed by accident by Vigo and Sylvain at the beginning of the movie was played by Jacques Hinstin, the movie's executive producer.

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Soundtracks

Oblivious
Written by Nathaniel Méchaly and C. Walker

User Reviews

A wickedly intense thriller.

Horrible title for an amazing film. It's drawn a lot of comparisons to The Silence of the Lambs, which makes sense since it was obviously inspired by it (there's even a little nod to it with the main character having the novel on her bookshelf); the bleak and unrelenting tone as a backdrop for a story with a strong but tortured female detective hunting a killer. But the film shouldn't be dismissed as a rip-off or anything close; it's a fantastic journey into the darkness with a strong performance to bring you in. The story has an interesting approach in bringing us into the world, with a drunk driving incident being the catalyst for a murder and thus bringing the police force into it all.

Unlike most tales of this nature though, we get a lot of focus into many different subplots involving a romantic relationship, the struggle of the men driving the car responsible for a murder and ultimately into the mind of the killer themselves. It gets a little cluttered in the middle with all of these strains going on, but ultimately it boils back down to a fascinating thriller with great characters and a powerful lead performance. Melanie Laurent is absolutely dynamite here, portraying the lead with a tortured soul and a strong surface front. She always has you focused on her, studying her expressions and being right with her through every emotion she faces. This is a gripping and very bleak mystery that keeps your mind racing along with your pulse; the final fifteen minutes are some of the most intense I've seen in some time. Definitely an underrated hit.