Plot
Julien Vercel, a real estate agent in the south of France, is hunting for ducks by the lake, while a man named Massoulier, who hunts in the same area, is shot dead. Julien returns to his office unaware but is soon questioned by the police. He learns that he is the main suspect, because when he left the hunt, he saw Massoulier's parked car, turned its lights off to save the battery and closed one of the door upon which he left fingerprints. Furthermore, the deceased Massoulier and Julien's wife, Marie-Christine had a secret relationship. When he confronts his wife later at home, she nonchalantly confirms her adultery. While Marie-Christine hides, Julien is taken to the police station for a second interview but is released with the help of his lawyer, Clement who drives him home. In the meantime, Marie-Christine has been murdered. Julien is now the prime suspect. In an effort to prove his innocence he wants to go to Nice, where his wife previously worked, but his secretary, Barbara Becker, argues that she should do the research on his behalf. She does so cunningly when her boss falls asleep in the office. Barbara is secretly in love with her boss, whereas Julien seems to have been indifferent to her. While Julien hides in his real estate office instead of surrendering to the police, Barbara, who travels to Nice, starts investigating the past life of Marie-Christine. She learns that Marie-Christine's real name was Josiane Kerbel, that she has been married to a gambler, and that she lost a great deal of money gambling on horses. She married Vercel only to avoid drowning in debts. The tracks lead Barbara and Julien to a movie theater, then to a night club, and from there to the dark labyrinths of the prostitution area. Barbara and Julien mistakenly assault a suspicious man, believing him to be the real killer. It is revealed that he is, in fact, Massoulier’s brother. At the theater, a box office clerk, former lover of Massoulier, who viciously accused Julien of murder on the phone, is stabbed to death. Barbara, at her wit’s end, goes to see Julien’s lawyer and finally find the truth : Clement and Marie-Christine were lovers. He killed Massoulier because Marie-Christine asked him to, he killed her because she did not wanted to divorce Julien, he killed the clerk because she knew everything and he would have killed Julien after that. Barbara and a savvy police officer work together to set a trap for the lawyer. Clement, who smells the trap based on the sound recording at the last minute, commits suicide in a phone booth after having admitted everything on the phone, when he sees the approaching cops. Julien and Barbara finally get married by Massoulier's brother who is a clergyman.Cast
Awards and nominations
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* * * * * {{Authority control 1983 films 1983 comedy films 1983 crime films 1983 thriller films 1980s comedy mystery films 1980s comedy thriller films 1980s crime comedy films 1980s crime thriller films 1980s French-language films 1980s mystery thriller films 1980s psychological thriller films Films directed by François Truffaut Films based on American thriller novels Films scored by Georges Delerue Films with screenplays by François Truffaut French comedy mystery films French comedy thriller films French crime comedy films French crime thriller films French mystery thriller films French psychological thriller films 1980s French films