Credits Director:
Philippe Lefebvre
Script:
Bernard Stora and Philippe Lefebvre
Photo:
Jean-Paul Schwartz
Music:
Luis Enríquez Bacalov
Cast:
Jacques
Perrin (Juge François Muller), Richard
Bohringer (Lucien Inocenti), Daniel Duval (Antoine Rocca), Andréa
Ferréol (Regine Sauvat), Jean Benguigui (Donati), Michael
Lonsdale
Runtime:
90 min
Aka:
The
Judge
Summary Juge Muller is determined to bring suspected drugs
baron Antoine Rocca to account. When Rocca is arrested for possession
of firearms, Muller cancels his leave and sets about gathering the evidence
to support a cast-iron prosecution. But Rocca is a very dangerous
man to deal with…
Review Le Juge is a typical 1980s detective thriller which
bears some striking similarities with Yves Boisset’s 1977 film Le
Juge Fayard dit le shérif. However, the latter is
certainly the better film, for several reasons.
Despite
some creditable acting performances (particularly from Perrin and Bohringer)
Le
Juge is strangely lacking in tension and momentum. The middle
section of the film is heavily bogged down in the minutiae of the police
investigation, introducing a plethora of minor characters. Perin
himself fails to come across as a sympathetic character, appearing as a
dispassionate thug in many scenes, undermining the entire premise of the
film.
This
is not to say that this is necessarily a bad film. It does have a
strong narrative which is generally well executed, with some entertaining
stunts. However, it could probably have had greater impact if the
director had chosen to develop the characterisation instead of diverting
so much attention to the action. |
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