The Flower of Evil

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Audience Member Three generations of a wealthy family are torn apart when Anne (Nathalie Baye), the second wife of drink philanderer Gérard (Bernard Le Coq), runs for mayor. That unleashes a political pamphlet that brings back so many old scandals, including war profiteering, corruption, Nazi collaboration, cheating, incest and generally not being very great people. At the same time, François (Benoît Magimel), Gérard's son from his first marriage, has returned from America and is soon leaving for a romantic weekend with his stepsister and cousin Michèle (Mélanie Doutey), who comes from Anne's first marriage, not that that will look good to the public. Yet Aunt Line (Suzanne Flon) encourages this forbidden romance. Well, maybe not forbidden, because it seems like this family has been interbreeding since they were a family. So maybe that pamphlet is on to something. Ah, that pamphlet. So many Gérard wrote it, which is up for conjecture, but he definitely tries to assault Michèle on the night that her mother secures the election. As he attempts to take her, he falls and dies, just as the victory party arrives. Claude Chabrol was into his fiftieth film when this was made and he filmed what he was most interested in: the French rich, their scandals and a crime. It just so happens that one crime takes place in the past and another in the present, with both involving the same players. Sometimes, you can play the same song over and over and if you're good at it, we notice that the notes are slightly different and are still engaged by them. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/06/23 Full Review Simon T Superbly acted late-Chabrol family drama, the plot of which unfurls gradually like a rose. As so often in his best works nothing is overstated, and only very slowly do we appreciate how manners, decorum and deception mask the truth. I don't know why reviews are so mediocre for what I would champion - alongside La Ceremonie - as one of Chabrol's very best works. Only the occasional melodramatic flashback tarnishes another claustrophobic gem. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 04/29/24 Full Review Audience Member S?abiutki film Chabrola. Nawet Benoit Magimel nie pomaga. Rated 1/5 Stars •  Rated 1 out of 5 stars 02/08/23 Full Review Audience Member A good Chabrol film filled with dark characters some intense family secrets and as always incredibly cool dialogues. It's a pure Chabrol movie. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/26/23 Full Review Audience Member loved it, family secrets, illicit affairs... hugely enjoyable Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/15/23 Full Review Audience Member A decent suspenseful film that reminded me of the V.C. Andrews books with all the buried sinister family secrets. Some families just cannot escape evil, especially when it comes from within! Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/11/23 Full Review Read all reviews

The Flower of Evil

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