No. 46 (2022) MAIGRET June 15th.

 

Film No. 46  (2022) June 15th.  10:30 AM  LUNA  Essex Cinemas,  Fremantle.

"Someone wanted to make this girl disappear, but she must have left traces, somewhere" (Maigret's chief hands the case over to his No.1 sleuth. The great man's aim will be to follow each trace!).

There have been so many derivatives of this likeable French detective told through the eyes of other nations, mainly British; here is a nice change, the king of French cinema, Gerard Depardieu, playing the iconic fictional detective in the place he belongs.

Depardieu does Maigret beautifully. The big, lovable detective occupies 90% of all scenes and solves the murder of a sweet, insecure street girl, quietly, thoughtfully and with great compassion. Every scene is coloured with a deductive ingenuity of which Holmes and Poirot would be proud. Our big man's compassion emanates from a loss. Its a personal loss of the worst kind and the most poignant  thread to the use of Maigret's subtle skills.       

Director Patrice Leconte (MONSIEUR HIRE) has created a costume drama with great skill and care. Here the resources of the costume and design departments are much more sophisticated than those of the script writers. That's not to say the script is not good, it's simply prosaic, predictable and polished with the slightest and not terribly satisfying of twists.

Film's like MAIGRET are made with a matinee feel. I watched it on a dark and dreary afternoon never expecting anything more than I got. None of the 87 minutes (yes 87 minutes) was wasted in telling this uncomplicated story. Satisfied, and entertained was the aim of my morning outing. Depardieu ticked all the boxes!  8GUMS.