“A
top executive of the Paris branch
of an international company pays
the ultimate price when she foolishly
underestimates a colleague whose
ideas she has hijacked in the clever
French film Love Crime with its well-
spun twists and turns’...”
RUTHLESSLY AMBITIOUS EXECUTIVE Christine Riviere (Kristen Scott Thomas: The
English Patient; Sarah's Key) at international company Barney & Johnson
takes great delight in patronising her colleagues and stealing their thunder
— especially that of junior executive Isabelle Guérin (Ludivine Sangier:
The Girl Cut In Two; The Devil's Double), who works closely with her
and is often responsible for her success.
Christine has her sights set on the New York Office and wants to control everyone
in her world. She is sometimes inappropriately familiar with Isabelle, kissing
her, giving her a scarf she admires and making intimate remarks about her. When
Isabelle comes up with a great idea for clinching a deal in Cairo, Christine
takes the credit and Daniel (Guillaume Marquet), who has a friend in the Washington
Head Office, tells Isabelle that it is high time she was recognised for her
vital contribution.
“Love
Crime:
Murderously
compulsive...”
Christine's
lover Philippe Deschamps (Patrick Mille) — whose company does work
for Barney & Johnson, accompanies Isabelle on her trip to Cairo where they begin
a passionate affair. Isabelle is surprisingly vulnerable and desperately wants
to feel loved. When Philippe rejects her and Christine accuses her of sending
a threatening email and then humiliates her, she is determined to get her own
back.
Daniel intercepts a project from America and offers it to Isabelle, by-passing
Christine; but when Christine finds out that Isabelle has worked on it alone
and presented it to the Americans, she holds the threatening email and the fear
of being fired over her head as she tells Isabelle not to interfere with her
promotion to New York.
The games that Christine has played with Isabelle, toying with her apparent
innocence, is to backfire in a terrible way. Confident of her control over Isabelle,
Christine leads her into a confusing, perverse game of seduction and domination.
Isabelle's own ambition and innate cunning lead to an all-out boardroom battle
of wits with deadly and horrific repercussions that will have a far-reaching
effect. With a number of twists and turns, Love Crime (Crime d'Amour)
is murderously compulsive. But as Isabelle puts her deadly plan into place,
will the truth come out or has she deviously worked out a clever way in which
to beat the system?
Described as "a must for fans of modern film-noir suspense thrillers", Love
Crime was officially selected for both the Toronto International and LA
Film Festivals and boasts incredible performances from the female leads.
Love Crime also features: Gérald Laroche as Gérard; Julien Rochefort
as L'avocat; Olivier Rabourdin as The Judge; Marie Guillard as Claudine (Isabelle's
sister); Stéphane Roquet as Fabien; Stéphane Brel as le voisin d'Isabelle; Mike
Powers as Boss 1; and Matthew Gonder as Boss 2.
Original Music is by Pharoah Sanders; Cinematography by Yves Angelo; Writers
(Scenario, Adaptation and Dialogue) are: Alain Corneau and Natalie Carter; Produced
by Saïd Ben Saïd; and Directed by Alain Corneau.
*Love
Crime is a dark and masterful blend of psychological drama and intrigue
based on a screenplay by Corneau and Natalie Carter and comes to DVD courtesy
of Arrow Films on 22 April 2013. Running Time: 106 Minutes | Catalogue Number
— DVD: FCD767; Blu-ray: FCD768 | RRP — DVD: £17.99;
Blu-ray: £19.99 | French with subtitles.
“A
top executive of the Paris branch