36 Quai des Orfevres (2004) Movie Review, Cast & Crew, Film Summary

A tough, involving, emotionally fraught melodrama unfortunately peppered by plot holes and loose ends. The director, Olivier Marchal, is an ex-policeman, and he’s obviously strongly influenced by Heat in particular, with some dashes of Jean-Pierre Melville. For the most part he gets you in and keeps you in. Daniel Auteuil and Gerard Depardieu play two rival Surete captains who find themselves both pursuing a gang of near-paramilitary armored car thieves and a shot at the Commissioner’s slot. Depardieu’s emotionally unstable and neither man is above bending the rules along way, which soon puts them both in the hottest of hot water, with tragic consequences. There’s a gem of a supporting performance from Francis Renaud.