Julien Gahyde (Mathieu Amalric) and Esther Despierre are former classmates and having an affair. Julien is married to Delphine with a daughter Suzanne. When Esther's pharmacist husband is found dead, Julien is brought in by the police for an interview. Then Delphine is found dead and the police suspects poisoning.

I find this a muddled, confused, and flat telling of a possible murder mystery. The odd thing is that it's deliberately muddled, confused and flat. It's reworking the traditional crime drama. It's admirable but I don't think it works. The tension is all gone. There are no thrills. I don't think we even see the dead bodies. Mathieu Amalric is a great actor but the flat telling keeps the audience at a distance from the characters. There are moments where one gets glimpses something deeper in his character but he keeps the mask on for most of the movie. It's hard to say if the truth is revealed and that's kind of the point of the movie.

This is really quite a simple story. Man has affair with other man's wife. Has wife and family but re-unites with woman he met before his marriage. They have a series of trysts. She has a husband who has a serious medical condition and one day he dies. Unfortunately, the woman is a pharmacist and it appears that they have done a "Postman Always Rings Twice" murder. The whole thing focuses on a bewildered man who realizes that his actions have a consequence. He's not even sure what has happened as he sits in a courtroom. Sometimes justice is less about criminal justice and more about moral justice. A slow moving psychological drama based on a George Simenon novel.

Laden with awards and nominations (well deserved) Mathieu Amlaric is always a good bet, whether acting, directing, writing, or, as here, all three, he seldom lets you down and on the whole opts for interesting and/or unusual projects. Writing and acting with his real life partner (he was, at one time, married to another fine if somewhat neglected actress Jeanne Balibar) Stephanie Cleau, not exactly chopped liver if anyone asks you, he has elected as source material a non-linear novel by Georges Simenon, arguably the most adapted novelist of all time, and the partners have done an excellent job in both departments. The film's strength is in keeping you guessing whether you are watching an account of an intense affair - a la liaison pornographique with Nathalie Baye - a crime passionel, a courtroom drama or, as it turns out, all three. This is top of the line whichever way you look at it and the DVD is already on my list.