Légitime violence (1982)
Directed by Serge Leroy

Film Review

Although political thrillers were beginning to get a little passé in France by the 1980s (the genre was at its height of popularity and inventiveness in the previous decade), some film directors were still able to use the old formula effectively to tell an entertaining story whilst making some valid socio-political observations.  Légitime violence is a fairly good example of the 1980s néo-polar, a sombre film noir thriller which picks up on the growing trend for vigilantism in France, a do-it-yourself approach too crime management that arose from perceived failings of the police and judiciary in the previous decade.  Perhaps it would be more accurate to describe this as a post-néo-polar, since it is concerned not so much with the complicity of police, politicians and criminals, but with the public reaction to this once it had become apparent that such corruption was fairly endemic in France.

Prior to this, Serge Leroy had directed two very different kinds of thriller - La Traque (1975) and Les Passagers (1977) - both painting a disturbing portrait of French society, one where the police are completely ineffectual and ordinary people feel justified in taking law into their own hands.  Légitime violence isn't quite as compelling as these two films but it slickly directed and boasts strong performances from Claude Brasseur and Thierry Lhermitte.  Brasseur is a perfect choice for the everyman character who sets out to avenge the death of his family only to end up a pawn in a complex and potentially deadly game of political-judicial chess.  Although the plot is far too intricate and convoluted for its own good (and ends with many questions left unanswered), the film still manages to be a compelling and thought-provoking work, thanks to its convincing characterisation and startlingly gritty realisation.  It presages the darker, more violent crime thrillers that would come to the fore in the 1980s and later decades.

Film Synopsis

Martin Modot's life is torn to shreds when the three people who are closest to him - his wife, his daughter and his mother - are all brutally murdered in what seems to be an armed robbery at Deauville station.  Other prominent victims of the attack include the politician Robert Andréani and some members of his family.  As the police investigation ambles along at a lethargic snail's pace, Martin becomes increasingly impatient.  He cannot bear the thought that the perpetrators of the crime will get away, so he decides he has no choice but to take matters into his own hands.

To that end, Martin joins a neo-fascist group of vigilantes and acquires the skills he needs to go after the individuals who have ruined his life, to inflict on them his idea of justice - namely summary execution.  As he does so, he is blissfully unaware that his murdered relatives were merely collateral damage in a meticulously orchestrated political killing.  Unwittingly, by going after the men who murdered his loved ones, Modot is merely serving the cause of his real enemies, the ones who planned the assassination.  The latter are counting on someone as stupid and impulsive as Modot to deflect attention from their involvement in the crime...