The Night Clerk (2011) User Reviews (9)

It happened on the way back home

[dbdumonteil · 7/10 · 3 April 2012]

This movie takes us back to the gold old "Cinema De Papa" when Pierre Very and Boileau-Narcejac wrote strong screenplays which did not fall apart after the first reel;some would mention Georges Simenon,which means we deal with pure psychological drama/thriller.

Jean-Pierre Bacri gives a powerful terrific performance as the owner of a luxury hotel in the Pyrénées ;we do not really know if he is forced to help this young delinquent because this young lad knows too much about his family or because he needs a human being he can call his son -the relationship with his own son is not exactly ideal-;as for Frederic,he has always been a boy down on his luck:his boss is(or seems to be) the first person to show him sympathy ,in spite of the reproaches of his wife ,who is not prepared to accept a prole -who was in jail for three months- in her cozy bourgeois home.

The cruel ending has got something of Claude Chabrol,maybe the only NV director who had his roots in the great old cinema .

Vincent Rottiers is the weakest link of the cast ,lacking screen presence ;just imagine what Cyril Descours would have done in this part!

Sylvie Testud plays a female Colombo ,also recalling the parts of those superintendents of long ago,Louis Jouvet in "Quai Des Orfevres" or mainly Charles Vanel in "Les Diaboliques".

The director is not Clouzot or Christian-Jaque ,but his movie ,an oasis in a world of blood ,sex and violence,should not be missed:once more,kudos to Bacri!

Interesting psychological drama

[mcsawley · 7/10 · 6 March 2011]

Gloom atmosphere of the October - period in a holiday resort in the Pyrenees. The setting reminds of an Hitchcock film, the tension, the characters, the closed environment, alas not the film direction. The objects and evidences of the culprit do not play the role they could in building up the suspense, there is no follow up. I found that the whole story and suspense lands flat on its nose. Good acting from most of the cast, and especially from the second roles. The hotel does not look real for one moment, with real customers, that is a pity.

Good scenario and story, lacking somehow inspiration. Worth seeing in spite of its dull moments.

Before dawn

[jotix100 · 7/10 · 21 February 2012]

A luxury French hotel in the Pyrenees, is the setting for this thriller. Frederic Boissier, a young man recently released from jail for a minor charge, is hired to work at the luxury inn. The owner of the hotel, Jacques, wants to keep his guests in posh surroundings. As the story begins, he asks Paul, his son, to go for some wine supplies at a near town. The roads are covered with snow, traveling is difficult. On his way back to the hotel, Paul, accidentally kills a man on the road.

Frederic, about to leave for the day, witnesses as Jacques and Paul return the van which Paul was driving to the garage. Jacques, who realizes his young employee has seen them, decides to keep Frederic in a different position at the hotel, which surprises the young man. Jacques acts friendly toward his new employee, yet when an investigative woman detective arrives to question the hotel owner, and his staff about the death of the man who was a guest at this luxury hotel, his son, or even him, will be found out, so he goes into high gear to protect himself and his family from the scandal.

Sometimes drivers involved in hit and run accidents, such as the one Paul experienced, become paralyzed with fear for the consequences of their actions. It would have made more sense to report the accident, instead of trying to hide the victim, which ties Jacques to the crime. Directed by Jacques Jacoulot, "Avant l'aube" is a psychological thriller that shows exactly the type of mentality of a man that cannot face his responsibility after accidentally having caused the death of an innocent man on the road during inclement weather.

Co-written with Lise Macheboeuf, the film is worth watching because of all the elements the creators brought to the story. Shot in different locales between France and Andorra, the film gets the viewer's attention from the start. The casting of Jean-Pierre Bacri who plays Jacques, helps the film for the actor is lends an aura of mystery and elegance to the proceedings. Young Vincent Rottiers makes a good impression in the way he handles Frederic, the man whose involvement in the crime is null, but gets dragged into it against his will. Silvie Testud makes a good contribution to the film with her detective, which reminded us of Frances McDormand in "Fargo".

Worth watching

[searchanddestroy-1 · 2 March 2011]

I like this french drama which sometimes have some thriller accents. Jean Pierre Bacri plays here a fancy hotel owner, right in the middle of the Pyrénées mountains, a superb setting. His son is a budding young gendarme - french police for the country side - who is just got married. One night, Bacri's son accidentally kills a man on the road. One of his father's hostel customer. The young man calls his dad and the two hide the corpse. That's where the story begins. Bacri, as usual, is very convincing in his character. Sylvie Testud, who plays the police woman in charge of the investigation, is very good too.

In this movie, all the characters are very effective in their parts. Nothing is really predictable. The ending is not a real one, and you can guess the following.

Well, maybe...

A psychological thriller that doesn't thrill

[muons · 4/10 · 14 January 2019]

This is a flat story that begins with a promising start then quickly turns into a snoozefest and finishes with a whimper. The acting and cinematography are indeed above the average. The female police character is laughable cliche with 70's Peter Falk impersonation. Although it's classified as a thriller there's hardly any tension in the unfolding drama that fails to create a shred of suspense.

Great policier with sociological undertones !

[stuka24 · 8/10 · 19 February 2012]

Some films stand or fall because of one actor, not only because most of the screen time he's there, but because the action pivots on him. This is the case of Vincent Rottiers, whose "Frédéric Boissier" will stay in my memory for a long time.

Well known actors J. P. Bacri, beautiful L. Mikaël and F. Perrot on the surface are the perfect family, owners of a hotel in the chic Pyrinees, serving the wealthy and powerful. But from the first scenes we know something is rotten, and Bacri knows Fréderic has seen to much. As this boy with a troubled past has no family and a simple girlfriend, Machiavellian Bacri buys our friend F. with trifles. A coat from his own son (who subsequently hates him), some awful stiff dinners with his stressed family, staying at the worst employee's room for a few days. And affection, plus a father figure, which F. never had and needs so badly.

Bacri is of course perfect as a likable guy who even while blatantly lying, you wind up still believing him. We've all been used by people like "Jacques".

Nice well shot scenery (even if you don't like the snow & mountains), well used (sparsely) classical music, and a glimpse into a world most of us won't ever know (pricey winter resorts) seen from the owner and the worker's perspective, to boot.

I didn't like the female inspector's character, played by Sylvie Testud ("Ce que mes yeux ont vu" among others) who this time, strangely enough, is not believable at all, I am sure, because of a "thin" character, always clumsy, asking some questions but ultimately not delivering much.

"Jacky", Fréderic's coworker, is also a hidden gem of a character. If you've been envied by somebody without knowing why, you know Jacky.

Sadly beautiful Céline Sallette (Le grand alibi) is also moving in this film, albeit in a small role.

It'll keep you gripping at your seat until the end, and then some. Can't say the same of most blockbusters you'll ever see :)!

PS: There are some loose threads, about a car's light that F. finds, for instance, and doesn't put to good use. Just a passing thought.

Good until...

[sjanders-86430 · 5/10 · 8 March 2021]

If you love the Haute Pyrenees this is a winter's view of that treacherous landscape filled with narrow winding roads in the middle of nowhere. An accident happens and is covered up. The night clerk knows who did it. At first he is given a better job to keep his mouth shut, but an inspector is persistent and the hotel owner let's him go. He has no money and robs the hotel. He is taken in. Will he tell the truth? The unique winter landscape is the main reason to see this. The actors are good. The script is a stupid cover up of a snowy road accident. The whole thing could have been explained. I would still recommend it.

Complete stupidity! Avoid at all cost!

[qui_j · 2/10 · 1 January 2021]

This film starts off with a lot of potential but rapidly loses its way and goes down in flames. The plot becomes progressively sillier and leads up to an ending that makes absolutely no sense. Viewers will feel cheated by the silly ending and the fact that they have wasted over an hour of their life watching this rubbish. Avoid at all cost!

Magnificent subtle French film

[nobregas2000 · 9/10 · 26 January 2021]

Filmed in a unique place at the Pyrenees. film about the subtleties of justice and injustice. Amazing acting by lead character playing a marginal young man.