Comedy of Power (2006)

While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Claude Chabrol uses a very unexcited style to show how corruption penetrates industry and politics in Western societies, in this film by the example of France, but applicable for all states. And he gives a portrait of a strong woman, played by the ever-fantastic Isabelle Huppert, who comes to clean up but soon reaches a point where she has to see how many people are in this system and defending it. You never really get warm with Huppert's character, firstly because the camera is very distanced and just observes, and secondly because of the character itself. She never has the chance to show emotions, every sign of it would be considered a weakness and would be exploited by her enemies. This being the way to survive in her job, it seriously harms her private life. Her marriage is destroyed by it, and friendship is hard to get with many sneaky one's trying to use her. Definitely worth seeing and an interesting look behind the curtains. But of course, this film "doesn't describe concrete events of the day."

... could've been better. At least that's what I think. This movie does start with a phenomenal pace and you get sucked into the story, but then after a little while it drags and you're wondering where the passion of the first few minutes has gone. I wondered that and you might too.Let's take a look at the actors though, because they are doing a fabulous job here. And the movie will stand of fall for you (the viewer), with your perception of Jeanne Charmant-Killman (played by Isabelle Huppert). If you don't like her, than you will hate this movie.Despite all that, this is still an engaging film, that has a few surprises up it's sleeves, so it's up to you, if this genre is something worth watching.

I confess right from the beginning to being a fan of Isabelle Huppert. I am also a student of Claude Chabrol films. I say 'student', because his films are intellectual and challenging in nature. This film is a film of our times. And its themes are also timeless. The flawed protagonist, Huppert, lives shamelessly in front of the camera. She is very human, as well as idealistic. And her idealism is personal and competitive, as well as moralistic. Chabrol has captured grand corruption in a simple narrative about people alone and in conversation. Never slick, always homely and familiar. Isabelle Huppert's performance is tempered and unusually restrained. Her aptitude for endowing her characters with mannerism and eccentricity by using simple gestures and facial expressions is in full play here. This is a film that requires effort to appreciate, but it leaves you feeling quite full.

This new movie by Claude Chabrol is directly inspired by a true story. The "Affaire Elf", named by the french oil-company, was a large financial and political scandal where several top-level french politicians where involved, such as Roland Dumas (ex foreign-affairs minister) or Charles Pasqua (ex minister of interior). As in the true story, a judge is investigating about some corruption in business between a french major company and some African states. Most of the characters in the movie are very similar to real persons involved in the "Affaire Elf".The movie focuses on two subjects: the first one is how the judge (Isabelle Huppert) becomes more and more addicted to the power she uses by sending powerful businessmen to jail; the second one is the wide-scale cynicalness of people involved in the scandal, used to play with public money and take advantage of this without seeing anything immoral.A good movie, very funny because, as stated at the beginning "any similarity with real person or event would be, as it is said, fortuitousness".