Anticipation.
Love a gritty Gallic police drama.
Enjoyment.
Suitably tense, tonally deft.
In Retrospect.
Not revolutionary, but competent and compelling.
The bizarre work that les flics do is described by supporting character Marceau (Bouli Lanners) as “Good versus evil, with a wonky printer”. This could be the tagline of Dominik Moll’s The Night of the 12th, adapted from the novel ‘18.3: Une année à la PJ’ by Paula Guéna, which depicts the attempts of a crime investigation squad to solve a horrific murder case and the mundane dysfunctions that get in their way. The printer doesn’t work, they don’t have enough budget, plus the team’s own ghosts and prejudices cloud their vision.
After the brutal murder of Clara Royer, monosyllabic police chief Yohan Vivès’ (Bastien Bouillon) and his squad aim to piece together the evidence and find the killer. Multiple suspects are unearthed, and systematic misogyny means that many are on the verge of blaming the victim. Vivès rails against this, and becomes increasingly obsessed with the case. Bouillon’s portrayal of the emotional eunuch, a compulsive cyclist who’s finally been kicked by a case, is never hyperbolic.
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The genre’s stock characters – the all-work-no-play boss, the jaded older cops, the gruff one who gets on everyone’s nerves, and the ingénue who provides light relief – are used adeptly, while the limited number of locations keeps the film lean. The chess pieces and board remain recognisable, yet the game is played differently. It’s a satisfying film, even though it lacks closure. Nothing is unnecessary or over the top – so Moll doesn’t push the boat out.
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