Dédales (2003)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

René Manzor

Writer:

René Manzor (writer)

Release Date:

10 September 2003 (France)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

L'individu n'est que la somme des personnalités qu'il abrite

Cast

Lambert Wilson	...	Brennac
Sylvie Testud	...	Claude
Frédéric Diefenthal	...	Matthias
Michel Duchaussoy	...	Karl Freud
Edouard Montoute	...	Ray
Tomer Sisley	...	Malik (as Tomer Gazit Sisley)
Jean-Henri Compère	...	Alex
Jérémy Bombace	...	L'enfant
Valérie Lemaître	...	La mère / La prostituée
Michaël Toch-Martin	...	Le livreur de pizzas (as Michaël Toch)
Pierre Triboulet	...	L'aveugle
Tshilombo Imhotep	...	Stan
Hakim Louk'man	...	Karim
Jean-Paul Dermont	...	Simon
Stan Sluijzer	...	Marcel

Also Known As:

Labyrinth (International: English title)

Runtime:

France:100 min

Country:

France | Belgium

Language:

French

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Finland:K-15 | France:-12 | South Korea:15 | Germany:16 | Japan:PG-12

Company:

Alexis Films

Trivia:

Director Cameo: [René Manzor]as the attorney in the beginning of the film

Movie Connections:

Remade as Labyrinth (2010)

the individual is the amount of the personalities he has

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

It's the second effort from René Manzor I watch after "le Passage" (1986) which was a turkey and this one is several notches above at the level of quality.

If you were fond of the linear but absorbing "Primal Fear" (1996) and the stylish "Fight Club" (1999), then, "Dédales" may appeal you. It is an offbeat crossing between the two quoted flicks and you will be able to make the rapprochement between them only at the end of the film which contains an "de Rigueur" unexpected twist and because "c'est à la mode". That said, the expressions I used to describe it are not to be meant pejoratively. Yes, it's highly far-fetched and hardly credible but it ends a captivating thriller with a scenario. Manzor had the neat idea to incorporate the legend of the Minotaur as a basis for the starting point and the evolution of his story. Evolving on two ways: a few days before the arresting of Claude when a gloomy, young inspector (Frédéric Diefenthal) investigates about a series of murders committed by a serial killer and a few months after in a psychiatric hospital when doctor Brennac (Lambert Wilson) has to study a patient, Claude (Sylvie Testud) who suffers from schizophrenia and shelters multiple personalities, Manzor creates a sticky atmosphere for the former and a sultry one in the latter. He also served his film with a sharp editing and several sequences, especially the end will leave you on the edge of your seat.

There's a good cast: Lambert Wilson is excellent, Sylvie Testud, one of the luminaries in the contemporary French cinema confirms if it was necessary the full extent of her acting skills. Michel Duchaussoy provides a palatable secondary role and Frédéric Diefenthal, unrecognizable with his disheveled hair and beard shows he can be a good actor apart from the "Taxi" saga.

The movie was broadcast late at night on the sixth French channel a week ago. They're usually duds which are broadcast at this hour of night but here it was a bit unfair to shelve it this way!