"Humanite" appears to be a film about a child murder/rape and the search for the killer. In fact, the film is a character study en masse which tediously examines a handful of players with Schotte at the center as a rural cop. A critic's darling because it is oh so different, "Humanite" could be said to be avant guarde neo-hyper-realism. Or, it could be said to be a load of crap. The film does not equal the sum of its parts and is frustratingly incongruous for no apparent reason. I personally found it strangely fascinating. However, I suspect the film going public at large will reject "Humanite" as tedious and too over-the-top. Good stuff for cinema sophisticates into French film but certainly not for everyone. (B)
