Thieves (film)
Encyclopedia
Thieves is a 1996 French drama film directed by André Téchiné
, starring Daniel Auteuil
, Catherine Deneuve
and Laurence Côte. The plot follows a cynical police officer, who comes from a family of thieves, and a lonely philosophy professor, both romantically involved with a self-destructive petty criminal. With a puzzling structure, the story is told through a series of flashbacks presented from four different perspectives.
region, is awaken in the middle of the night. His mother, Mireille is crying and his widower grandfather, Victor, tells the boy that his father, Ivan, is death. The next day, Alex, Justin’s uncle and Ivan’s younger brother, arrives for the funeral accompanied by a young woman, Juliette. Justin notice the tension between the adults. He takes his father's gun and hides it. The story flashes backward and forward to explain what led up to Ivan’s death.
Alex, who has rebelled against his family by becoming a cop, works in the deprived La Duchere district of Lyon
. He begins with his encounter, a year before Ivan’s death, when he first meets Juliette, who is brought to his office when she was arrested for shoplifting. He lets her off. He sees her again one day when he visits the sleazy nightclub run by his older brother, Ivan. Ivan is a crime boss and runs a popular club with a drag revue, funding his business through a stolen-auto ring headed up by Jimmy, who is Juliette's brother. The encounter between the siblings on opposite sides of the law is tense, they barely get along. Ivan is happy to show Alex that he is doing much better than him on the wrong side of the law. After their second encounter Alex and Juliette star a tortured affair beginning to meet regularly for sex. He is not in love with her, and their relationship is complicated by the young woman's emotional and sexual involvement with Marie, a professor of philosophy. Alex spies on Marie. Ivan hears about Juliette’s relationship with Alex and threatens her. Ivan and his gang, including Juliette, plan the theft of cars in a railway deposit
The heist at the railway marshaling yard goes disastrously wrong when Ivan is shot dead. Juliette, who had been coerced into participating, against Jimmy’s wishes, is distraught by Ivan’s death. Emotional imbalance and self destructive, Juliette tries to commit suicide twice, first while staying with her brother and later while visiting Marie, after Ivan’s death. Marie has her interned in a psychiatric hospital to recuperate. Alex asks Marie for the address of Juliette’s clinic, but she has disappeared. In search of Juliette, Marie visits her housing estate apartment. After Ivan’s cremation, Alex makes an effort to connect with his nephew without much success. On a local fair, Justin threatens Alex with a gun. Justin learns the truth about his father’s death from his grandfather Victor.
Marie visits Alex, who tells her Juliette was involved in the heist and that he is trying to find her. Alex and Marie develop an uneasy friendship as they bid, from a distance, to protect Juliette. Later Alex visits Marie and finds she has become a recluse, writing a book about Juliette. He tells her Juliette is safe because the police are looking for a boy. Later Alex hears that Marie has committed suicide as he receives her manuscript and the tapes of Juliette’s voice in the post. Alex goes to see Juliette in Marseilles, but leaves her alone when he sees she is well from a distance. She has builds a new life for herself and works in a bookshop. Justin has taken after his father and grandfather and do not like his uncle. By contrast, Justin gets along very well with Jimmy. Jimmy decides to marry Ivan's widow, Mireille.
. It was released in France
on 21 August 1996 and in the United States on 25 December that same year.
Thieves received widespread praised from film critics. It is generally considered, with My Favorite Season
and Wild Reeds, among Téchiné’s best films. Review aggregate Rotten Tomatoes
reports that 82% of 11 critics have given the film a positive review, holding an average score of 7/10.On line film critic James Berardinelli
called the film "strong and keenly-insightful ". Roger Ebert
from the Chicago Sun-Times wrote that "Téchiné involves us in a subtle, gradual process of discovery; each piece changes the relationship of the others. He is so wise about these criminals, he makes the bad guys in most American films look like cartoon characters."
In USA Today
Mike Clark commented that in Thieves “Deneuve gives one of her best performances ever, though she's not exactly the movie's focus. Of the many pleasures here, one is trying to guess just who the dramatic focal point is". Janet Maslin
in the New York Times
reported that in the film "Téchiné explores the intricate connections among these characters with a somber, penetrating wisdom that is the film's main reward."Jonathan Rosenbaum
from Chicago Reader called the film "a Masterpiece"
The film received five nomination to the Cesar Awards, including the categories of Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress (Catherine Deneuve), Best Young Actor (Benoît Magimel) and Best Young Actress (Laurence Côte). It won only in the last category. In addition, Benoît Magimel received the Prix Michel Simon as Best Actor for his performance in Thieves.
. Its fragmented structure has been compared to a William Faulkner
's novel, particularly to The Sound and the Fury
(1929). The narrative — consisting of a prologue, five sections, and an epilogue — leaps around in time and switches between the viewpoints of Justin, Alex, Marie, and Juliette. The Sound and the Fury unfolds over four days, likewise, switching narrative perspectives. Both The Sound and the Fury and Thieves also have a central female character who is loved obsessively by two of the narrators: Faulkner’s novel has Caddie, who is loved by her brothers Benjy and Quentin, and Téchiné’s film has Juliette, who is the love interest of both Alex and Marie. The divided time structure emphasize the interlapping relationships between the characters.
, regular composer in Téchiné's films. The sound track includes an eclectic mix of artist and styles like : Cheb Mami, Liza Minelli, The Archies and Mozart.
on March 4, 2011 in the United States
by Sony Pictures
as a DVD-R
manufactured on demand. The film is in French
with incorporated English
subtitles. Les Voleurs is also available in Region 2 DVD.
André Téchiné
André Téchiné , is a French screenwriter and film director. He has had a long and distinguished career that places him among the best post-New Wave French film directors....
, starring Daniel Auteuil
Daniel Auteuil
Daniel Auteuil is a French film, television and theatre actor.-Early life and education:He was born in Algiers, French Algeria.-Career:...
, Catherine Deneuve
Catherine Deneuve
Catherine Deneuve is a French actress. She gained recognition for her portrayal of aloof and mysterious beauties in films such as Repulsion and Belle de jour . Deneuve was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress in 1993 for her performance in Indochine; she also won César Awards for that...
and Laurence Côte. The plot follows a cynical police officer, who comes from a family of thieves, and a lonely philosophy professor, both romantically involved with a self-destructive petty criminal. With a puzzling structure, the story is told through a series of flashbacks presented from four different perspectives.
Plot
Justin, a ten year old boy living in a small town in the Rhône-AlpesRhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes is one of the 27 regions of France, located on the eastern border of the country, towards the south. The region was named after the Rhône River and the Alps mountain range. Its capital, Lyon, is the second-largest metropolitan area in France after Paris...
region, is awaken in the middle of the night. His mother, Mireille is crying and his widower grandfather, Victor, tells the boy that his father, Ivan, is death. The next day, Alex, Justin’s uncle and Ivan’s younger brother, arrives for the funeral accompanied by a young woman, Juliette. Justin notice the tension between the adults. He takes his father's gun and hides it. The story flashes backward and forward to explain what led up to Ivan’s death.
Alex, who has rebelled against his family by becoming a cop, works in the deprived La Duchere district of Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
. He begins with his encounter, a year before Ivan’s death, when he first meets Juliette, who is brought to his office when she was arrested for shoplifting. He lets her off. He sees her again one day when he visits the sleazy nightclub run by his older brother, Ivan. Ivan is a crime boss and runs a popular club with a drag revue, funding his business through a stolen-auto ring headed up by Jimmy, who is Juliette's brother. The encounter between the siblings on opposite sides of the law is tense, they barely get along. Ivan is happy to show Alex that he is doing much better than him on the wrong side of the law. After their second encounter Alex and Juliette star a tortured affair beginning to meet regularly for sex. He is not in love with her, and their relationship is complicated by the young woman's emotional and sexual involvement with Marie, a professor of philosophy. Alex spies on Marie. Ivan hears about Juliette’s relationship with Alex and threatens her. Ivan and his gang, including Juliette, plan the theft of cars in a railway deposit
The heist at the railway marshaling yard goes disastrously wrong when Ivan is shot dead. Juliette, who had been coerced into participating, against Jimmy’s wishes, is distraught by Ivan’s death. Emotional imbalance and self destructive, Juliette tries to commit suicide twice, first while staying with her brother and later while visiting Marie, after Ivan’s death. Marie has her interned in a psychiatric hospital to recuperate. Alex asks Marie for the address of Juliette’s clinic, but she has disappeared. In search of Juliette, Marie visits her housing estate apartment. After Ivan’s cremation, Alex makes an effort to connect with his nephew without much success. On a local fair, Justin threatens Alex with a gun. Justin learns the truth about his father’s death from his grandfather Victor.
Marie visits Alex, who tells her Juliette was involved in the heist and that he is trying to find her. Alex and Marie develop an uneasy friendship as they bid, from a distance, to protect Juliette. Later Alex visits Marie and finds she has become a recluse, writing a book about Juliette. He tells her Juliette is safe because the police are looking for a boy. Later Alex hears that Marie has committed suicide as he receives her manuscript and the tapes of Juliette’s voice in the post. Alex goes to see Juliette in Marseilles, but leaves her alone when he sees she is well from a distance. She has builds a new life for herself and works in a bookshop. Justin has taken after his father and grandfather and do not like his uncle. By contrast, Justin gets along very well with Jimmy. Jimmy decides to marry Ivan's widow, Mireille.
Cast
- Daniel AuteuilDaniel AuteuilDaniel Auteuil is a French film, television and theatre actor.-Early life and education:He was born in Algiers, French Algeria.-Career:...
- Alex - Catherine DeneuveCatherine DeneuveCatherine Deneuve is a French actress. She gained recognition for her portrayal of aloof and mysterious beauties in films such as Repulsion and Belle de jour . Deneuve was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress in 1993 for her performance in Indochine; she also won César Awards for that...
- Marie Leblanc - Laurence Côte - Juliette Fontana
- Benoît MagimelBenoît MagimelBenoît Magimel is a French actor. A prolific actor who was 14 when he appeared in his first film, Magimel has starred in a variety of roles in French cinema....
- Jimmy Fontana - Didier BezaceDidier BezaceDidier Bezace, born 10 February 1946 in Paris, is a French actor.-Biography:Theatre student at the International Dramatic University Centre in Nancy, Didier Bezace received lessons from Bernard Drot, Jean-Marie Patte, Gilles Sandier, Maria Casarès and Henri Gourbion.Co-founder with Jean-Louis...
- Ivan - Julien Rivière - Justin
- Ivan DesnyIvan DesnyIvan Nikolai Desnitskij was a Russian actor born in China who worked for most of his life in Germany.-Career:Desny was a film/movie actor. He acted in more than 150 films, most of them German...
- Victor - Fabienne Babe - Mireille
- Régis Betoule - Régis
- Pierre Perez - Fred
- Naguime Bendidi - Nabil
Reception
The film premiered in May 1996 at the 49th Cannes Film FestivalCannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
. It was released in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
on 21 August 1996 and in the United States on 25 December that same year.
Thieves received widespread praised from film critics. It is generally considered, with My Favorite Season
My Favorite Season
My Favorite Season is a 1993 French drama film directed by André Téchiné and starring Catherine Deneuve, Daniel Auteuil and Marthe Villalonga. The story concerns two middle age siblings, a brother and sister, who resume their fragile relationship when they are forced to care for their ailing mother...
and Wild Reeds, among Téchiné’s best films. Review aggregate Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reports that 82% of 11 critics have given the film a positive review, holding an average score of 7/10.On line film critic James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli is an American online film critic.-Personal life:Berardinelli was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey and spent his early childhood in Morristown, New Jersey. At the age of nine years, he relocated to the township of Cherry Hill, New Jersey...
called the film "strong and keenly-insightful ". Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
from the Chicago Sun-Times wrote that "Téchiné involves us in a subtle, gradual process of discovery; each piece changes the relationship of the others. He is so wise about these criminals, he makes the bad guys in most American films look like cartoon characters."
In USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
Mike Clark commented that in Thieves “Deneuve gives one of her best performances ever, though she's not exactly the movie's focus. Of the many pleasures here, one is trying to guess just who the dramatic focal point is". Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin is an American journalist, best known as a film and literary critic for The New York Times. She served as the Times film critic from 1977–1999.- Biography :...
in the New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
reported that in the film "Téchiné explores the intricate connections among these characters with a somber, penetrating wisdom that is the film's main reward."Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum is an American film critic. Rosenbaum was the head film critic for the Chicago Reader from 1987 until 2008, when he retired at the age of 65...
from Chicago Reader called the film "a Masterpiece"
The film received five nomination to the Cesar Awards, including the categories of Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress (Catherine Deneuve), Best Young Actor (Benoît Magimel) and Best Young Actress (Laurence Côte). It won only in the last category. In addition, Benoît Magimel received the Prix Michel Simon as Best Actor for his performance in Thieves.
Analysis
Thieves was directed by André Téchiné in the style of film noirFilm noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
. Its fragmented structure has been compared to a William Faulkner
William Faulkner
William Cuthbert Faulkner was an American writer from Oxford, Mississippi. Faulkner worked in a variety of media; he wrote novels, short stories, a play, poetry, essays and screenplays during his career...
's novel, particularly to The Sound and the Fury
The Sound and the Fury
The Sound and the Fury is a novel written by the American author William Faulkner. It employs a number of narrative styles, including the technique known as stream of consciousness, pioneered by 20th century European novelists such as James Joyce and Virginia Woolf. Published in 1929, The Sound and...
(1929). The narrative — consisting of a prologue, five sections, and an epilogue — leaps around in time and switches between the viewpoints of Justin, Alex, Marie, and Juliette. The Sound and the Fury unfolds over four days, likewise, switching narrative perspectives. Both The Sound and the Fury and Thieves also have a central female character who is loved obsessively by two of the narrators: Faulkner’s novel has Caddie, who is loved by her brothers Benjy and Quentin, and Téchiné’s film has Juliette, who is the love interest of both Alex and Marie. The divided time structure emphasize the interlapping relationships between the characters.
Music
The original score for the film was written by Alain SardeAlain Sarde
Alain Sarde is a French film producer and actor who was born on the 28 March 1952 in Boulogne-Billancourt. One of his films, Mulholland Drive received the Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Picture. The Pianist was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture and won the BAFTA Award for...
, regular composer in Téchiné's films. The sound track includes an eclectic mix of artist and styles like : Cheb Mami, Liza Minelli, The Archies and Mozart.
- Douha Alia Cheb MamiCheb MamiAhmed Khelifati Mohamed better known by his stage name Cheb Mami , is an Algerian-born raï singer...
- Baadini Rachid TahaRachid TahaRachid Taha is an Algerian singer and activist based in France who has been described as "sonically adventurous." His music is influenced by many different styles such as rock, electronic, punk and raï.-Early life:Taha was born in 1958 in Sig , Algeria, although a second source suggests he was...
- Sous le soleil de Bodega Les Négresses VertesLes Negresses VertesLes Négresses Vertes, formed in 1987, is a French music group that is best described as a fusion of world music and some aspects of alternative rock. Their tracks often feature acoustic guitar and accordion, as well as some tracks containing many other 'traditional' instruments such as piano and...
- Sugar Sugar The ArchiesThe ArchiesThe Archies are a garage band founded by Archie Andrews, Reggie Mantle, and Jughead Jones, a group of adolescent fictional characters of the Archie universe, in the context of the animated TV series, The Archie Show...
- The Magic Flute Wolfgang Amadeus MozartWolfgang Amadeus MozartWolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
- Tonite Les Rita MitsoukoLes Rita MitsoukoLes Rita Mitsouko was a French pop rock group formed by guitarist Fred Chichin and singer Catherine Ringer. The duo first performed as Rita Mitsouko at Gibus Club, Paris in 1980...
- La Valse Petite La TordueLa TordueLa Tordue is a popular musical group from Paris, France that existed from 1989 to 2003.-Personnel:* Benoît Morel: vocals* Eric '"Fil" Philippon: Guitar, melodica, bass, xylophone, banjo, toothbrush, vocals...
DVD release
The film was released on DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
on March 4, 2011 in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
by Sony Pictures
Sony Pictures Entertainment
Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc. is the television and film production/distribution unit of Japanese multinational technology and media conglomerate Sony...
as a DVD-R
DVD-R
DVD-R is a DVD recordable format. A DVD-R typically has a storage capacity of 4.71 GB. Pioneer has also developed an 8.5 GB dual layer version, DVD-R DL, which appeared on the market in 2005....
manufactured on demand. The film is in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
with incorporated English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
subtitles. Les Voleurs is also available in Region 2 DVD.