Specialized in Giallo, Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani sign with Let the corpses tan their third feature film. A film mixing gangster film and western that smells of the seventies, with many tributes to exploitation and B movies, it promises a film that deserves the detour. Focus.
Despite aclassic story, Let the Corpses Tan is a film on which the authors have put their mark. A film with an atmosphere that smells of spaghetti westerns, with visual qualities close to hallucination. It is also a post-modern film that allows itself to follow a character before going back slightly to find the point of view of another character.
Besides, the characters let's talk about it. Let the Corpses Tan is above all a choral film, a film that focuses on several characters. The plot is very simple. A day in the 70s in the south of the France. Three robbers have stolen 250 kilos of gold and are hiding in an abandoned village belonging to an artist in need of inspiration. Unexpected guests arrive: among them, two cops. From there, the film turns into a closed door and a rabid and bloody joyous massacre. Adapted from a novel by Jean-Patrick Manchette and Jean-Pierre Bastid, the scenario is only a pretext for a playful B series and offers us many scenes of shootings, licked and stylized images, as well as a cast of mouths and excellent actors.
Aesthetically speaking, we have already said it: the film is superb. The colors manage to give thanks to the light of the south of the France, thanks to warm and warm hues, which make the film a beautiful film. Then, there is a certain sense of frame in the two filmmakers, who go to the essentials and manage to tell a story in a purely visual way. A framing and shots that pay tribute to a whole section of cinema bis, ranging from Mad Max (the cops dressed entirely in leather that refer to the first part of the saga of George Miller) to the cinema of Dario Argento.
Another striking element in the realization is the sound treatment. The atmosphere is created largely through sounds. Clothes that crack, wind, a cigarette that lights up, eggs that cook… All these elements could allow Let Tan the Corpses easily get a nomination for the César for Best Sound. Sounds help create a dirty and squeaky atmosphere. As for the music, it's absolutely fantastic. Referring once again to spaghetti westerns and Italian genre films, she exudes a grace that takes the film to a lyrical and baroque dimension.
Regarding the casting, we note the presence of Elina Lowenshon, who plays a strong woman and imprints her presence and presence in the film (the film is shot on film). Impressive charisma, the Romanian actress is to be watched very closely and there is no doubt that she will become an important figure among French genre film authors (she will also be on the poster of the excellent Les Garçons Sauvages).
The only problem is history.This one is certainly rather well conducted at first. However, it ends up becoming a pretext for shooting scenes and a real exercise in style that shows the fascination of the two directors for a certain cinema. While this is fascinating and galvanizing to do, it is not very exciting to watch and ends up leading to boredom for the viewer.
Let the corpses tan is therefore an imperfect film that deserves a look, if only for the fun that can represent the viewing of this film and the pleasure of cinephile. In the end, as James Cameron said, "It will seem better to you among friends, after you have each lowered half a pack of beers!"
