I love a good mystery.
We’ve been seeing a slight uptake in whodunits in the form of Rian Johnson’s Benoit Blanc films and Kenneth Branagh’s Hercule Perrot revivals, but we haven’t seen murder mysteries like Anatomy of a Fall in a long time. Whether it be A Few Good Men, Witness for the Prosecution, or even Anatomy of a Murder which director Justine Triet seems to be influenced by from the title, a thrilling mystery with a charismatic attorney, raucous prosecution, and a sympathetic but suspicious defendant always makes for a fun story. While Anatomy of a Fall is more methodic and brutal than the previous films I listed, it does maintain some of the fun from those types of stories.
The film follows Sandra (Sandra Huller), a writer whose husband is found dead outside her home. While it is suspected as a suicide, the police suspect foul play, and Sandra is the prime suspect of her husband’s murder. The film starts off methodically, inch by inch assembling the pieces of this plot, with each new revelation as titillating as the last. The film never slips into melodrama, but the over-the-top Prosecutor (Antoine Reinartz) and Sandra’s friendship with her defense attorney, Vincent (Swann Araud), give the film a spice that lifts it up from the typical mystery. Plus, the more details were learn about Sandra and her relationship with her husband, the more captivating and intense the mystery gets.
The film lives on the tongue of Sandra Huller and her performance is excellent. She carries a gravitas of experience with her character, letting so many sides of her bare and open. She knows how to play a character forcing you to question everything you know about her: how much of this is the real her, is she being sympathetic or holding back, or both, or neither? It’s clear Sandra Huller is having fun playing this layered, flawed, and relatable character, giving her just as much quiet, hurtful moments as scenery to chew.
Anatomy of a Fall is a treat for any and all mystery fans. Its tight direction and stellar performances give the film a much needed polish for such a calculated and intense story. Each new layer to the ever growing story just builds and builds to a satisfying cake of a story. It’s the type of mystery that as you watch it and think you’re settling into a solid groove, with pull the rug from under you with every heart-wrenching detail. By the time the film ends, you’ll be thinking about it for weeks, yearning to watch it again.
Anatomy of a Fall will be released theatrically October 13th and is playing at the NYFF again on October 18th
