36 quai des orfevres (2004)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Phil H

  
  Based on certain real life events or stories from a real cops career and directed by that said ex-cop sure means this is gonna be realistic or you hope it would be. You really get a vibe of 'Heat' here with this, the French version, a very solid tense story that weaves in… More
  Based on certain real life events or stories from a real cops career and directed by that said ex-cop sure means this is gonna be realistic or you hope it would be. You really get a vibe of 'Heat' here with this, the French version, a very solid tense story that weaves in and out with a few sub plots going on and many characters to keep up with. I must admit I didn't really get on with the film as much as 'Heat' as there isn't as much action and what there is can't compare to the Hollywood flick and there is also allot of subbed dialog to follow which does become tedious I can't deny. Its a very good film and very well made that's clear from the start, Depardieu is great as the dirty police chief who slowly gets so corrupt that the lines of morality between cop and criminal are lost. Other cast members I have never really heard of but they all do their jobs very well with other main lead Daniel Auteuil even looking kinda Pacino/De Niro-ish haha. Fast moments of car chasing and gun play are exciting but short lived for me giving way to allot of plot and talk which I just couldn't get on with to be honest, loved the look and the performances but its long and predictable really. It does seem more accurate than most other Hollywood ventures though I give it that.

• Cynthia S

  
  AKA: 36th Precinct--A French police thriller, full of mean-spirited rivalry and rampant cop corruption. Well done enough to peak my interest. What do famous French actors do when they get older and fatter? I guess they star in movies like this to give the movie some appeal.

• Stephen M

  
  Corny, far-fetched, melodramatic, littered with belief-beggaring coincidences and more predictable than <I>Titanic</I> (who saw that iceberg coming? Not me!). Thinking about it, there's a lot to dislike about this movie; that I didn't totally despise it is… More
  Corny, far-fetched, melodramatic, littered with belief-beggaring coincidences and more predictable than <I>Titanic</I> (who saw that iceberg coming? Not me!). Thinking about it, there's a lot to dislike about this movie; that I didn't totally despise it is entirely attributable to a superb cast, in particular the ever-excellent Daniel Auteuil. The film opens with an audacious armoured car robbery, inevitably inviting comparisons with Michael Mann's masterly <I>Heat</I>. However, the similarities quickly evaporate when it becomes apparent that co-writer/director Olivier Marchal, unlike Mann, is not greatly interested in playing cat and mouse with his cops and robbers, indeed is barely interested in his criminals at all. What we get instead is an exploration of the rivalries and murky ethics of the two detectives heading the investigation into the robberies, one played by Auteuil, the other by Gérard Depardieu. Dramatic impetus - and not a little implausibility - is provided by the fact that, in addition to working the same case, both men are vying for the same promotion and have clashed over the same woman in the past. If this all sounds a bit like a soap opera, it should, because it is. Undeniably entertaining though, and, believe it or not, fans of <I>The Count of Monte Cristo</I> will find much to enjoy in the second half.

• Ross C

  
  Stylish French action-thriller that pits two SWAT cops against both each other and a master criminal gang. The result of this dark plot was never going to be pleasant for any of the parties.

• Luke B

  
  It's been called "The French Heat" which it certainly is, for the first half anyway. The second half is more like a French Infernal Affairs/The Departed. 36 is more than just a copy and paste film though. The films look at morality is brilliantly handled by an indepth… More
  It's been called "The French Heat" which it certainly is, for the first half anyway. The second half is more like a French Infernal Affairs/The Departed. 36 is more than just a copy and paste film though. The films look at morality is brilliantly handled by an indepth script, no one is completely innocent and we are not manipulated into thinking there is a simple right and wrong. Auteuil and Depardieu simply own their roles. As the film spirals into the madness and obsession of their rivalry we are swept along with them at a superb pace.

• Walter M

  
  In "36 Quai Des Orfevres," a bunch of cops have a raucous send off for one of their comrades in arms, Eddy(Daniel Duval), who is transferring, that includes vandalism and shooting up a bar. And there is nothing that will sober up policemen more than news of an armored car… More
  In "36 Quai Des Orfevres," a bunch of cops have a raucous send off for one of their comrades in arms, Eddy(Daniel Duval), who is transferring, that includes vandalism and shooting up a bar. And there is nothing that will sober up policemen more than news of an armored car robbery that leaves two dead. This is the seventh one in the last year and a half, and Superintendent Mancini(Andre Dussollier) wants this solved before he is promoted. He also wants Leo Vrinks(Daniel Auteuil) to replace him, instead of Denis Klein(Gerard Depardieu), whose raw ambition frightens him. Luckily, Vrinks gets a tip from Hugo Sillen(Roschdy Zem), a snitch. Unluckily, Sillen uses Vrinks as an alibi for a murder. Even worse, is that Sillen is sloppy. "36 Quai Des Orfevres" is a compelling and moody crime drama that succeeds by emphasizing emotion and thought over action. While these police are not exactly corrupt in this men's world, they still cross the line(which is there for a reason) at will which comes with a high price.(And sometimes, it's hard to tell the difference between the cops and the criminals, especially at first in the opening scene.) In such a morally murky world, it is a shame that the ending works out so very neatly, as I also have a problem with certain characters' motivations. At least, there are some fine moments and the movie is elevated by its excellent cast, especially by the great Daniel Auteuil whose work we do not see often enough here in the States.

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