Thieves . Nashville Scene . 09-22-97

Thieves

DIRECTED BY: André Téchiné

REVIEWED: 09-22-97

In some ways, this latest melodrama by the great French director Andre Techine (Ma Saison Prefre) does double duty as a crime film, although the only action per se occurs when an unfortunate car thief makes the mistake of peeking around a corner. Otherwise, Techine displays his near-incomparable gift for propelling stories through strong ensemble acting and colorful dialogue. As in Ma Saison Prefre, the drama emanates from a rotten core of family relationships--chiefly the one between a hard-boiled Lyon cop, Alex (Daniel Auteuil), and his gangster brother, Ivan (Didier Bezace). Yet it's hard to say who is at the plot's center, as the director alternates narrators, arranges a series of flashbacks, flash-forwards around one character's death, and repeatedly teases us with the notion that everyone who crosses the frame is a voleur of one sort or another.

--Rob Nelson

Other Films by André Téchiné
Ma Saison Preferee

Film Vault Suggested Links
The Long Good Friday
I Went Down
Brother

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