Summary
Commissaire Philippe Jordan is determined to crush a notorious drugs syndicate run by
the elusive magnate Sauveur Meccacci. His methods are far from orthodox, however,
and his one-man crusade is not appreciated by his police colleagues...
Review
With its colossal budget, big star names (Belomondo and Silva), spectacular stunts and
unbelievable action scenes, Le Marginal is a lavish French crime thriller which
easily rivals similar extravaganzas from Hollywood. But that is really all there
is. There is little in the way of originality, the plot is both dull and predictable,
characterisation is virtually non-existent and there is a distinct lack of those characteristics
which distinguish the French thriller from its American counterpart (wit, charm, a certain
poetry, and irony). Le Marginal is merely an unashamed attempt to compete with
the American blockbuster action thriller on its own ground, although it does rather a
good job of doing so.
Jean-Paul Belmondo plays the film’s lead character, a tough maverick with a sentimental
streak, the role which Belmondo had made his own in the preceding decade. Whilst
the actor is beginning to look a little too long in the tooth to be playing this kind
of action hero, he is still impressive, oozing charisma and throwing himself (literally)
into the most incredible death-defying stunts. It was undoubtedly the actor’s popularity
at the time which assured the film’s staggering success in France. Within its first
week of exploitation, Le Marginal had attracted nearly half a million spectators,
a record which has rarely been broken since.
© James Travers 2001
|
