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Panic

Play trailer Poster for Panic Released Nov 26, 1947 1h 35m Crime Drama Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
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100% Tomatometer 11 Reviews 93% Popcornmeter 50+ Ratings
Alice (Viviane Romance) gets out of jail after taking the rap for a crime committed by her lover, Alfred (Paul Bernard), only to find that he has recently broken the law in a more serious fashion: After a botched holdup, Alfred brutally murdered an elderly woman. Just when the couple think their days are numbered, town outcast Monsieur Hire (Michel Simon) begins to fall for Alice. Realizing that the locals despise the pariah, Alice uses her charms to trick him into taking the fall.

Critics Reviews

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Kenneth Turan Los Angeles Times It is part shadowy film noir, part compelling character study and, most surprising of all, part powerful indictment of mob violence in general and the French character in particular. May 4, 2017 Full Review J. R. Jones Chicago Reader [A] crackerjack mystery. Feb 2, 2017 Full Review Bilge Ebiri Village Voice Duvivier's film kicks off in a realist register, then gradually transforms into a noirish romance of deception until finally settling into a tragic allegory of wartime collaborationism and the cruel madness of rumor, fear and and spite. Jan 18, 2017 Full Review Yasser Medina Cinefilia With an atmosphere filled with suspense and moral ambiguity, Duvivier integrates elements of film noir with great subtlety and, also, allows for a formidable performance by Michel Simon. [Full review in Spanish] Rated: 7/10 Jun 8, 2025 Full Review Sean Axmaker Stream on Demand ... a striking and dramatically satisfying noir-tinged portrait of ordinary people roused to a veritable lynch mob through prejudice and suspicion. Nov 18, 2023 Full Review Nicholas Bell IONCINEMA.com Duvivier's sympathetic yet highly problematic central character and its strikingly macabre finale makes this moody piece of poetic realism a prescient example of today's compromised humanity in a globalized world. Rated: 4/5 Aug 18, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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S R Moral dilemmas abound in this unique French thriller. Good acting and directing. I was intrigued by the plot and the ratings, so I gave it a chance. RUS Rated 4 out of 5 stars 08/17/24 Full Review Audience Member De retour de son exil aux Etats-Unis, Julien Duvivier reprend son cinéma en France presque comme si ne rien était. Ce premier film d'après-guerre d'après une nouvelle de Georges Simenon, reprend tous les codes du cinéma français d'avant guerre. Encore une fois Michel Simon y est grandiose et signe un de ses rôles les plus marquant dans l'inquiétant Mr Hire. Patrice Leconte fera un remake du film avec Michel Blanc bien moins réussi en 1989. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Panic

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Cast & Crew

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Julien Duvivier

Director

Viviane Romance

Alice

Michel Simon

Monsieur Hire

Paul Bernard

Alfred Chartier

Guy Favières

Monsieur Sauvage

Louis Florencie

L'inspecteur Marcelin

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Panic

Panic (1946) Panic (1946) Panic (1946) Panic (1946) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Alice (Viviane Romance) gets out of jail after taking the rap for a crime committed by her lover, Alfred (Paul Bernard), only to find that he has recently broken the law in a more serious fashion: After a botched holdup, Alfred brutally murdered an elderly woman. Just when the couple think their days are numbered, town outcast Monsieur Hire (Michel Simon) begins to fall for Alice. Realizing that the locals despise the pariah, Alice uses her charms to trick him into taking the fall.
Director
Julien Duvivier
Screenwriter
Charles Spaak, Julien Duvivier
Production Co
Filmsonor
Genre
Crime, Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
French (France)
Release Date (Theaters)
Nov 26, 1947, Limited
Rerelease Date (Theaters)
Jan 20, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA)
$41.6K
Runtime
1h 35m