This film is amazingly skilfully done, especially as it consistently sticks to facts, although everything is veiled in the euphemism of so called fiction, but the bones stick out of the well dressed flesh, and you can never hide the skeleton. It's a gruesome story with horrible ingredients of torture and brutal violence, all accentuated by unfortunately a most authentic cynicism giving the film a most inhuman character, but as it is so expertly done in total realism all the way you are fascinated and will endure it to the end, not with relish, but with constantly increasing interest and irresistible fascination. Michel Blanc plays the investigating police who after the war tries to get together some documentary of what the French gestapo really was busy about, interviewing many people with astounding objectivity - there is hardly room for any feelings or human upsets in this film, although the chapter is overwhelmingly upsetting. There are a few women who succeed in adding a human touch to the terrors with some emotion, but even the Jewess who gets away is stone cold and betrays nothing of her feelings. It's a great, amazing and admirable film penetrating thoroughly into one of the most revolting chapters of French history, and you will never forget this film for its sharpness.
Review of 93, rue Lauriston
